William Creswell Naval Academy
by angeleyes2838
Summary: It's the toughest school in Australia, and Kate McGregor has just found herself in the middle of it. Enter: Mike Flynn, childhood 'sweetheart' and the most competitive guy ever. Expect sparks to fly and boys put into place. Welcome to the Academy.
1. Chapter 1

William Creswell Naval Academy; some say it's the first step to becoming a great navy personnel, other's say it's the last place you want to be, but as Kate McGregor walked through the iron gates of what had been said to be one of Australia's top ranking schools, her opinion became set, it was the former.

She could see the vast green grounds and the massive building that was the Academy just in front of her. She watched as other students or 'lieutenants' as most were dubbed, went about the start of their daily routines, whether it was jogging around the grounds, doing homework under one of the many trees or doing yoga under the already burning sun.

They were all wearing some sort of school uniform, and Kate looked down at her own academy attire: white pants, white shirt, white shoes. The hat she wore too, she knew to be white, and she wondered to herself who had insisted upon making the uniforms in the most easily stained colour in the world. Why not black or blue? She scoffed at her own stupidity; _because black is the colour of mourning and blue is already taken by the RAAF._ Still, she was willing to argue her point to change the uniforms to a colour that was at some sort of decency to not get stained easily.

Shaking her head in annoyance she continued walking down the gravel driveway and then turned left. Looking for the girls' sleeping quarters, she came across another girl dressed in the same white uniform. Going over to her she tapped her on the shoulder. The girl turned around, a big smile on her face, and Kate said, "Excuse me, I'm new here; can you please tell me where the girls' sleeping quarters are?"

"Yeah sure," the girl replied. "Follow me." She headed off in the direction Kate had been heading to before she asked for guidance, and Kate followed beside her.

They walked together in silence for about a minute, before the girl who Kate had observed to have brown hair and eyes with a personality she guessed to be bubbly and yet sophisticated, spoke, "I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself, I'm Nikki Caetano."

She held out a hand and Kate shook it, replying, "I'm Kate McGregor. How long have you been here at WCNA?"

"Oh, well, this year I'm turning seventeen and I started when I was twelve so I guess that makes it–"

"Six years this year," cut in Kate. Then noticing the frown on Nikki's face she added, "I'm sorry. I have a tendency to finish off other people's equations or sentences. Its habit I'm trying to break, but I'm failing terribly. Anyway, can you tell me a little about the school? I've read about it on the internet and read about it in articles, but I want to get the opinion of a student who actually goes here. I mean I know who the Admiral is and things like that, but I want to know if there are any secrets to get through the school. "

Nikki laughed. "Okay, sure. Um, I guess I should say that the secret to getting through a year here is to stay on top of your work, make sure that your uniform is always clean and the number one rule: stay on the good side of the Admiral." She paused a minute, thinking. "Then moving on to more important things, the cutest guy in the entire school is the Admiral's son, Mike Flynn; but I myself like Josh Holiday, a friend of his."

Nikki blushed, tilting her head to the side. "I'm yet to gain the courage to tell him though. I mean we talk and stuff, go out to parties on the weekend with a few of his mates but that's about it."

"Well, I wish I could help you there, but I can't. I don't exactly have the best experience with boys. I rarely go out and usually keep to myself. Just asking you where the girls' sleeping quarters are, is an achievement, social wise for me."

"Honestly? You seem to be the sort of person who can stand up for herself, can give speeches about important subjects, and who can manage to snag any guy she wants."

Kate rolled her eyes. "I just act as to what people imagine me to be, strong willed and commanding, but really, deep down, I'm just a quiet teenager who gets shy when around an extremely cute guy."

Nikki turned to her, smiling. "Is that so? Well then, it looks like I'm going to have build up that confidence of yours. Are you seriously shy when it comes to cute guys? Or just the ones you like?"

"Okay. I'm just shy around the guys I like. I can stand up and speak to any_ other_ male or whatever. I could probably speak up to the Admiral if I wanted to. But, if it's a guy I like, like I said, I'm instantly shy."

"So if I was to say that the handsome Mike Flynn was coming in our direction, what would you do?" asked Nikki looking behind her.

Kate shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't seen him in a while and thus I can't exactly make an opinion on whether I'll swoon or just treat him like any other male I know. Why are you asking? Is he following us?" She looked behind, noticing a blue eyed boy, dressed in his white uniform with messy brown hair eyeing them. Turning around swiftly, Kate felt her heart pound against her chest.

"I take that you've formed your opinion?" asked Nikki, raising an eyebrow at how flushed Kate had become.

Kate smiled, breathing out. "I think I've seen him before."

"Really? I don't think he's ever been to any other high school. How could you have seen him?" replied Nikki.

But before Kate could respond, she felt a hand tap her on the shoulder. Stopping, she turned around again, coming face to face with the boy that she and Nikki had only just been speaking about. Putting down her luggage, she felt herself blush before saluting.

Nikki did the same, save the blushing and instead just smiled and asked, "How was your Christmas holiday Commander Flynn?"

The man turned to look at Nikki, a firm expression set in his features, before he broke into a smile. "Yeah, it was great. We spent it over in Darwin with my grandparents. Went to the beach every day, and had a barbeque for Christmas and New Years; how about you?"

"Oh, we just went down to Sydney, watched the fireworks and all. It was great, but I'd rather have gone to Darwin, would've been more fun. Did you go see the ships there in the harbour?"

"Yeah I did, just before we left. My dad had to clear a few things up at the navy base. I met many people who claim to have met me when I was a _lot_ younger, but I don't remember meeting any of them." He shook his head, smiling at the memory.

He turned back to look at Kate, the seriousness that melted away now set firmly back in place. He didn't like her, and Kate knew that. Nikki looked at him as he turned away watching as his happy expression changed; suddenly she remembered that Kate was standing beside her. "Oh! How rude of me, Lieutenant Kate McGregor, this is Commander Mike Flynn; Commander –"

"We've met before Lieutenant Caetano," cut in Mike, flashing a small smile before it disappeared.

Nikki frowned. "Really? Kate, you never told me that you actually _knew_ Commander Flynn. I thought you said you'd just _seen_ him."

Kate gave Nikki a sideways glance. "It was a long time ago, and is a very long tale. And I'm sorry, but I can't tell you it, because it is private. I don't mean to sound so harsh but like I said it is private and a story that needs each person's permission to tell."

"I completely understand," said Nikki, putting both palms up.

Mike narrowed his eyes at Kate. "Lieutenant Caetano you may go back to what you were previously doing; I'll escort Lieutenant McGregor to her sleeping quarters." And with a swift nod, he picked up Kate's bag without asking and led the way.

Kate eyed him as his long stride took him in the direction she was heading in before he had interrupted her and Nikki, and she apologised to her new found friend. "I guess he's showing me where to go. Sorry Nikki. I'll see you in class?"

"I'll save you a seat!" she called. Kate waved before running to catch up with Mike. Slowing down as she came up beside him, she coughed slightly before asking him, "Did you have to be so rude?"

Mike looked down at her, scoffing. "I can be as rude as I want Lieutenant. I am a commander here at WCNA, and it is not your right to question how I act."

"I have every right to question how you act. Is it your aim _Commander_ Flynn to anger _every_ new student who comes to this school, or is just the ones that have a history with you?"

He stopped. Turning his body fully to face her, he asked, anger lacing his voice in bucketfuls, "What are you doing here? _Why_? I thought you were supposed to be enrolled at some private school in Melbourne."

"What's it to you why I'm here? You're a commander; you shouldn't have to care why people are enrolled at this school – let alone someone you fell in love with."

He turned away, and continued walking. Kate followed beside him, matching his stride, and walking in an equally angry manner. She heard him mutter something before he started speaking more loudly. "Well I can tell you for certain, I've fallen out of love with you. And now that you're here, I'm going to make sure that you know it every day."

"You're going to try and make me suffer for something that happened when we were _fourteen_? That was three years ago Mike! Three years ago, and you're going to make me suffer? We fell in love, and now we've fallen out of it. Nobody deserves to suffer because of that. And remember, _you_ were the one that left, not _me_. I'm the one suppose to be angry, not you; and yet, it's the other way around."

By now they had come to the entrance of their destination. Mike dropped her bag and without even looking over his shoulder, shoved past her. Kate turned around, watching as he marched off. Shaking her head, she picked up her bag and entered the sleeping quarters. _What happened to the boy I used to know?_


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay, so I heard from a few of the girls in the sleeping quarters, that you and Commander Mike were fighting or something. Is it true?" asked Nikki, turning her head away from the chalk board to look at Kate.

Kate didn't move, instead remaining like a statue, just staring at the board, only ever allowing her hand to move as she took down notes. Nikki repeated the question, and Kate still didn't respond. Sighing, Nikki turned back to the board, taking down the notes the teacher had added in the short time she had turned away.

As soon as she had finished, the bell went. Picking up her books and bag, she turned to ask Kate if she was okay. But when she looked, she had already gone to the next class. Frowning, she hurried to the gym change rooms. Stepping through the door, she saw Kate's books and bag sitting in the corner. She had already changed and was now probably already running laps around the oval. Quickly changing, she went out onto the oval. Squinting as her eyes adjusted to the sunlight, she eyed Kate at the other end, practically alone with nobody else present except for...Mike?

She squinted even further, making sure that the brown haired boy in blue shorts was in fact Mike. _But what the hell is _he_ doing here? Don't tell me he's in our class – or even the instructor?!_ "Good morning Lieutenant Caetano! Had a good Christmas?" Nikki turned around in the direction that the voice had greeted. Seeing a middle aged man striding towards her, she breathed a sigh. _I wouldn't exactly have minded him teaching us...but then he can't be in our class! Isn't he in advanced?_

She smiled at the instructor. "Yeah it was great; had loads of fun. Uh, I thought that Commander Mike Flynn was in advanced..."

The instructor nodded. "He is; he's just here helping me with the selections for the open spot in the class. I hear we have a new addition to our class – a Lieutenant Kate McGregor?" He looked up, seeing nothing but green grass and trees.

"Here Sir!" called a voice from behind him. He turned around to see the new girl running towards him, barely out of breath and still looking like she could go and run a few more laps.

"Lieutenant Kate McGregor?" he asked.

Kate came to a stop in front of him, saluting before putting both hands on her waist as she rested. "Yes Sir. I'm Lieutenant Kate McGregor. You are, Commodore John Williams, am I correct?"

"Yes, I am Commodore John Williams, or just Sir for short." He smiled. "I see that you've already seemed to have completed the first leg of our fitness session? Running eight laps?"

Kate shook her head. "No Sir, I ran ten. I can do eight more when the other's come if you want me to. I honestly don't really mind." She started to get ready to run again.

Commodore Williams face showed shock. "Ten? And you can do more you say?" She nodded. "Well, we might just have to put you in the advanced group if you pass everything else. But, we'll have to wait for everyone else first. You can go rest in the shade if you want, or run more laps if you so desire to."

"I think I'll rest. I know what I'm to expect: 10 push ups, 25 sit ups, 2.4 km run in fifteen minutes, an average of 6.9 in the beep test and a 500m swim in thirteen minutes, so I'll need to be rested," replied Kate, smiling.

"That's a good idea. Go over and sit with Lieutenant Flynn over there under the tree and I'll call you over when everybody else has finished." He nodded in the direction of nearby oak tree, under which Mike was lying down. Kate nodded and ran over to him. Commodore Williams turned to Nikki, who was still standing beside him. "Your turn Lieutenant Caetano. Go run for your life."

"Aye Sir."

Nikki headed off around the oval, while Commodore Williams told off the late comers. "It is the first day back at school and you're all late for your first fitness lesson! Be late again and it'll be _sixteen _laps of the oval. Now go!" he barked.

Stopping a few metres away from the oak tree Commodore Williams had instructed she sit under, Kate looked at the boy she was supposed to share the shade with. Walking over and standing over Mike, she almost shouted. "Get up you lazy pig, there are others who want to be able to enjoy the shade without your disgusting body odour polluting the place." She stepped over him, sitting herself down at the base of the tree trunk.

Mike sat up, turning himself around so that he faced her. "Well, quite frankly I don't really care Lieutenant McGregor. _Others_ can deal with it, but if _you_ can't, go somewhere else." And with that he lay back down, glaring at her as she didn't move.

"What?" she retorted, her long gone English accent coming though again. "I'm not allowed to stay, even though your attitude is currently arrogant and conceited? Or is it because you _own_ this spot because your father is the Admiral? Is it because he so high and mighty and the boss of us all, and treats you better than the rest of us that you can demand to have everything to yourself?"

Mike instantly stood up. "What's that you said about my father? Did you _insult_ my father?" he demanded, stepping towards her. Kate didn't move, knowing that he would _never_ hurt, even though he appeared to hate her more than any person alive.

"And what are you going to do about?" she replied. "I know you'll _never_ hurt me. You wouldn't, would you?" She started to back a little, her back straightening against the tree.

He took another step forward, looking as if he really was going to hit her. Kate pushed herself against the tree even more, scared now. _Would he really harm me? Would he really hurt me? _She looked up, looking him in the eye, and seeing anger she thought he could never possess. "Please don't hurt me," she breathed, closing her eyes and covering her face with her hands.

Mike stopped, looking down at the girl he could easily hurt. _She is not a girl – she's a woman, she can handle being hurt. _He looked at her, seeing a frightened young girl in the eyes of the young woman. _She's not a woman; she's still a girl – a girl you _still_ love._ He stepped back and turned around, heading off into the sun and walking towards Commodore Williams.

Kate opened her eyes and lowered her arms, seeing nothing but the grounds of her new school. Looking around, she saw that Mike had walked off. Swallowing, she slowly stood up. Brushing herself off, she made her way over to the assembled people, just as Commodore Williams was about to call for her.

She smiled at the commodore and he returned it. Placing herself as far away as physically possible from Mike, she watched him every now and then as his eyes darted to watch her when he thought she wasn't looking. Observing him from afar was reminding her more and more of the first day that they had met three years back. Hot and practically shade-less, apart from the tree that they had been forced to share. She smiled a little at the memory.

_Flashback_

"_Excuse me, do you wanna move? I was here first."_

_A young fourteen-year-old Kate McGregor looked up to see a brown haired boy with bright blue eyes looking down at her. She scoffed. "I'm sorry, did you ask me something?" She looked back down at the book she had been reading._

_The boy raised his eyebrows, wondering to himself what sort of attitude this girl was playing at. "Are you going to move? Or am I going to have to move you myself?"_

_She rolled her eyes, not budging. She heard him sigh and looked up as he removed his T-shirt. She frowned. "What are you doing?"_

"_You're not moving so I'm going to move you, and I can't do that when I'm going to have my shirt sticking to me like glue," he replied._

"_You're not going to move me, not matter how hard you try."_

"_Oh yeah?" He glared at her. "Watch me then." He walked up to her, yanking her book away and throwing it into the sand._

"_What?! Why'd you do that for?" she cried, standing up. "Go get it!"_

"_Make me," he said, tucking his hands under his head as he lay down. Closing his eyes, he heard her scoff and then move off to get her book. Opening an eye to make sure she had indeed gone, he smiled to himself, a small victory._

"_Happy? You got it wet you moron." He opened his eyes, sitting up instantly. He saw the girl shake her book free of the water and then wipe it with her towel._

"_That's not going to help you know," he said, smirking as she went through the pages, attempting to dry them._

"_And you think I don't know that?" she asked, sitting back down. She threw her towel at him, watching as it landed on his head. She sulked. _

_He sighed. "What's wrong? It's just a book."_

"_Well, if you have to know, its book that was given to me by father, who I don't know that well because my mother and I moved out to Australia when I was only three. He knew that one day I would fall in love with Austen's writing and so he gave me a rare first addition leather-bound copy of Pride and Prejudice. And I swear, if you have ruined it, I am going to hit you."_

_The boy removed her towel from his head and walked over to her. Sitting beside her, he folded the towel and took the book from her hands, wiping the wet pages gently to ensure they weren't ripped. He smiled, extending his hand out. "Mike Flynn."_

_She shook it. "Kate, Kate McGregor."_

_End Flashback_

The two weeks that they had spent together had been the best two weeks she had ever had. Two weeks and the pair had been inseparable, spending every waking hour in each other's company. And then their two weeks of bliss came to an abrupt end when he was dragged back to Cairns. Kate had never fully had her heart healed after that, remembering how she used to spend hours every summer holiday crying over the boy she had grown to like and even love, and even with whom, shared her first kiss.


	3. Chapter 3

**William Creswell Naval Academy**_ – Chapter 3_

"Ten minutes, thirteen seconds!"

Kate tiredly hit her hand against the wall, taking off her goggles and sighing in achievement. Looking up at Commodore Williams, she smiled. "Did I make it?" she asked, breathing in deeply.

He nodded, smiling back at her. "You thrashed the girls' record here of twelve minutes and you were well under the passing time. Well done, I'm very impressed. Not many of the students here are willing to do over two hours of gruelling fitness training. But I see that you're very determined to get in the advanced group. Why's that?"

Kate shrugged, running a hand through her wet hair. "I guess I like a challenge. I like to be pushed and tested. I wouldn't even mind have a competition against the best boy in advanced."

Commodore Williams laughed. "The last time that _ever_ happened, it was boy verses boy and Commander Mike was the boy who came out victorias, and he was up against the best boy in year twelve as well. So I'd like to see you try."

"Are you saying that you don't think that I could beat Commander Flynn?" asked Kate, getting out of the pool slowly. Wrapping herself in her towel, she looked at him expectantly.

"I don't mean to put you down Lieutenant, but I've seen Commander Mike train, and I can tell you, he is a sure talent. I would be very surprised if he didn't pass the training test at the recruitment centre at HMAS Cerberus with flying colours, or get out of ADFA with the Sword for best Navy cadet."

"You doubt me Sir? You don't think that I good do _all _of that myself?" she replied, wrapping her towel around her waist and heading for the change rooms.

"No I don't doubt you Lieutenant," he chuckled. "I just can't imagine someone beating Mike at something he loves – the navy and fitness."

Kate threw her head back, laughing. "I vow to one day prove you wrong Commander – hey, Nik!" Nikki appeared at her side, a big smile on her face.

"I just saw you swim the 500m; it was so good. I watched Josh do it when he tried out for the advance class and I don't think he could do half as well as you. But then again, I think I was more admiring his stroke and muscles than how fast he was actually going." She blushed, following Kate into the change rooms.

"So, anyway, what was that I heard about you wanting to verse Commander Mike in a battle of the fittest? You do realise that Mike will probably win? He's like the school fitness freak, winning _every_ individual sporting event or the sport team wins if he's on the side. I've never seen him lose, but I'm sure it would be quite something," Nikki added, waiting as Kate shower and changed back into her sport change.

Walking out of the shower, Kate dumped her wet bathing suit in a separate bag before chucking it across with the rest of her things. "Do you know why the Commodore would be observing me and not everybody else?"

Nikki raised an eyebrow. "Isn't it obvious? He's already got you selected for the extra spot in the advanced class. You can see it in how much attention he's paying you. You're one of the _special_ ones, as he so puts it."

Kate cringed a little at being called a _special_ one. "Are you okay if I am in advance?" she asked, hesitantly.

Nikki laughed. "Nah, I'm fine. I was only joking; sorry about the seriousness, but what I did say about Commodore Williams calling the select advance students _special_ ones, is true."

Kate gave her a sideways glance as they both walked out back onto the oval where Commodore Williams and everyone else – the advance group included – were waiting. Running over to stand with the crowd, Kate stood at the front, Nikki smiling beside her.

"I know it has been a long, hot three hours of sport and fitness training and I know that you all want to know who has snagged the final place in the advanced class, but before that is announced, I would like to welcome you all back to a new a year, a new beginning, and of course, your final year here at WCNA. I congratulate you on coming back in full swing, putting your all in on the first day and dealing with the torturous three hours of pain in the sun and water, but you've finished and from now it's normal classes – except for you guys in advanced. And now it takes me to the final announcement, the lucky boy or girl who has been given the last open spot in the advanced class is...Lieutenant Kate McGregor."

Kate's eyes widened in wonderment, covering her mouth with her hands to muffle the squeal she would have let out. _Oh my God Nikki was right! But...Mike... _She looked across at him, looking for his reaction – but he had left. Instead she was met the happy faces of his friends. She smiled shyly at them before quietly turning away as Commodore Williams dismissed them.

"Hey? Are you going to lunch?" asked Nikki, stopping when she realised Kate hadn't followed her.

Kate shook her head. "No, not yet. I'll be there in ten. Save me a seat." She smiled. Nikki nodded, leaving. Kate turned, starting to head towards the oak tree she had sat down only three hours before.

"Excuse, Lieutenant McGregor?" Kate turned to see Commodore Williams holding out a piece of paper. "Your new timetable; your first advanced lesson starts tomorrow. See you then." He saluted and Kate saluted back, watching as he left in the direction of the academy.

Folding her timetable she tucked into her pocket and walked back in the direction of the oak tree. Leaning against the tree trunk, she allowed herself to slide down, landing with a soft thud on the grass. Dropping her head into her hands, she sighed. _No reaction. Nothing. Nothing at all._

"Congratulations. First day here and already you've managed snag the last spot in the advanced fitness class. What's next, Academy Captain?"

Kate looked up, as Mike's voice floated over to her, watching as he sat beside her, leaning his head against the tree. "What do you want?" she asked, crawling away from him to instead sit in front of him. She was still somewhat scared of him.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he replied. "What happened before was – I'm sorry, I didn't mean to threaten you, I'm just – I hate it when people insult me through my father, it's unfair and uncalled for, and completely cowardly, if you're going to insult me, I'd rather it straight out and to my face, not through my father who has nothing to do with it."

"But don't you think that people are more or less scared of insulting you to your face? The fact that one would rather insult the Admiral for being the Admiral and not your father is less scary than insulting the most popular kid in school. Although I myself am guilty of insulting you through your father and am therefore a coward, I'm the one who should be apologising. I shouldn't have insulted _you_ or your father, and for that I am sorry – but believe me, it doesn't mean that I have forgiven you for treating me like a piece of trash because I've come to WCNA or for the fact that you treat me like that because we have a past together."

Mike was speechless, truly speechless. He cleared his throat, standing. "Okay...see you next class." He gave a short wave before walking away.

Kate raised her eyebrows. _Well that's a first; Mike Flynn, speechless._ Shaking her head, she stood up too, her grumbling stomach demanding her to go to lunch. She stopped dead in her tracks, as if something had just hit her square in the face. _Great...math..._


	4. Chapter 4

**William Creswell Naval Academy**_ – Part 4_

"So, first lesson in advanced; are you nervous?" asked Nikki, through a mouth full of cereal.

Kate turned to her, swallowing her food before answering, "No, not really. Why? Should I be?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, maybe. You are after all in the same class as the biggest athletic nut in the entire school. Oh, and I asked Josh about being in advanced and he said that you should be prepared for a _lot_ of hard work." She shrugged again. "But then again, he's a boy, and I_ think_ you're the only girl to have ever made the advanced group since Commander Jenny Smith about a decade ago. She was the one to set all the records for the girls, and they were deemed to stand the test of time until you went and completely smashed them." She smiled at Kate's shocked face, taking a sip of her juice.

"That's – thanks for that Nik, it's much appreciated," replied Kate, nodding sarcastically. "Anyway, I should, you know, go change for my first advanced class; 'cause like you said, I'm nervous and I'm going to go check out the boys, you know, admire their bodies and all."

"Oh, can I come?" asked Nikki eagerly, a smirk playing at her lips.

"Why? So you can perv on Josh?" Nikki pouted and Kate rolled her eyes, grabbing Nikki by the hand.

"No! Of course not!" cried Nikki, running to keep up with Kate. "No, I wanna come so I can see _you_ whip the guys' asses _and _to perv on Josh."

Kate laughed, stopping in front of the change rooms. "Don't you have class?" she called.

"Not yet. I'm free until third period, which means I get to watch you kick ass," replied Nikki, leaning back against the brick wall.

Kate emerged, dressed in her blue shorts and white tee, the straps of her bathing suit visible through the white material. "Kick ass?" she repeated.

"Yeah," she replied with a nod. "You are after all the best damn girl when it comes to sport and fitness – that I know off anyway. And it will be hilarious if you kick the guys' asses in the games and tests. Ah, I can picture your victory now..." She laughed at the thought.

Kate shook her head, rolled her eyes and found herself joining in with her friend's laughter. "What's so funny?" asked a voice from behind them.

Kate and Nikki turned to see Mike stand there, his chest bare and his shorts unnaturally low. The girls raised their eyebrows, bringing their eyes up to look at his face. They giggled, and Kate answered for them. "Nothing's funny, although the sight of you and your very um...low, shorts is rather amusing." She snickered at his expression before grabbing Nikki by the arm and leading her out onto the oval where Commodore Williams was waiting patiently for his class to arrive.

"Good morning girls," he greeted, a broad smile on his face, a stopwatch in one hand and a water bottle in the other.

"Good morning Sir," they replied.

"I see that you've decided to watch Lieutenant," said Williams, nodding at Nikki.

"I have Sir," she replied, "I've come to watch Kate pull out stumps and win everything."

Williams raised his eyebrows, before turning away and speaking to Mike as he ran towards them – his shorts pulled up as much as they allowed him without creating an injury.

"Commander Flynn, are you ready to defend your titles? Lieutenant Caetano here thinks that Lieutenant McGregor may be able to beat you."

Mike looked from Williams to Nikki to Kate and back again, before breaking into a smirk and moving across from them to join his mates: Lieutenant Pete Tomaszewski, Lieutenant Chris Blake and Lieutenant Josh Holiday.

They talked amongst themselves and Nikki and Kate began to wonder if they thought that they were the _it_ group – the best of the best. Kate shook her head at them before looking at the other students, all of them boys, gazing back at her, looking at her as if she had some big zit on her forehead. Subconsciously, she reached for her forehead checking for any bumps, making it look like she was wiping sweat off.

"Welcome class to the first lesson of the year for advance. I hope that you all enjoyed your holidays. But this is a lesson, so don't start bombarding me with comments and statements on how good your holiday was. Anyway, back on subject, we have a new student whom most of you would've met in general fitness class last week. Welcome to Lieutenant Kate McGregor."

The heads of every boy turned in Kate's direction, all looking as if they were sizing up her ability, strength and determination. They also seemed to guess if whether or not she would be able to knock Mike off his perch as the school's best athlete. They decided she was too tiny, too skinny and too damn blonde to be of any significance, and they brushed her off, their attention back on the Commodore.

"So, I know it's going to be a very warm day, but as per usual, we'll start with a good ten laps of the oval before doing our usual stretches and heading to the outdoor pool to do a few laps and races."

Everyone nodded – all except Nikki – before they headed off around the oval. Nikki looked up at Williams, a questioning look on her face. "Do you think Lieutenant McGregor will be able to beat Commander Mike this year?"

Williams watched as Kate moved from the back of the line of students to the front, coming shoulder to shoulder with Mike. It was only the first lap and they were already fighting it out. Nikki laughed as she over took Mike, his face retorting into something that was supposed to look like subtle frustration but turned out to look a little like constipation.

Nikki burst out laughing, quickly holding it in as Mike and Kate passed, the others trailing behind them. Williams looked down at her, his eyebrow raised. "What's so funny Lieutenant?" he asked.

Nikki shook her head, her face becoming a bright red before she continued to laugh. Shaking her head she answered, "Nothing Sir, nothing. It's just – nothing Sir."

"Ah huh." He turned away, watching as the other students passed them, most of their eyebrows raised. "Is it that hard to believe that a female can outrun a male?" he stated.

Nikki shrugged. "Males will always think that they're the best in sport, but when a female comes along who just happens to be better than them...they just won't except it and will carry on like children – _you_ Sir, are an exception of course," she added with a smile.

"I'd like to think that Lieutenant," he replied.

---

They were now on their penultimate lap and Kate's breathing was starting to become heavy. She turned her head slightly to see Mike smiling back at her – not a gorgeous smile that would usually make her weak at the knees, but one that was more of a smirk, and he pulled ahead, the finish line in sight.

Kate narrowed her eyes, and she pushed forward, becoming level before finding some unknown energy and sprinting for the invisible line in front of Nikki and Commodore Williams. She burst across the line, coming to a slow jog a couple metres ahead before slowing completely and collapsing in a sweaty heap. Somewhere beside her, she felt the earth tremble slightly as Mike fell too.

"I won," she mumbled, smiling to herself.

He grunted, rolling over and looking at her face. He gave a small nod and flashed her a smile. "I acknowledge that, but you wait until we hit the pool – I'm gonna win." He gave her a wink, before sitting up and walking over to Commodore Williams for further instruction.

Kate raised her eyebrow, smiling slightly as she remembered the way he smiled and then winked at her. She shrugged it off however and walked over to stand beside Nikki.

Nikki smiled at her, jumping up and down before lunging forward to hug her as she approached.

"Whoa!" cried Kate. "What's got into you?"

"You beat the boys in the running, now we have to wait for the swimming and you'll dominate the main fitness trials," Nikki answered.

"Huh. Firstly that was only a warm up and secondly the actual 'race' isn't until a month or two. Don't forget that I still have to do the shuttle run."

"So? That doesn't count."

"Yeah, it does."

"Doesn't."

"Nikki, it does."

"Fine!" She placed her hands up, palms forward in defeat. "And as to the first thing you just said about this not being a race; in Mike's eyes it is, but when the real race comes along you'll beat them anyway, and you _will_ beat them in the swimming practice and the real thing. You have a couple minutes to recover for the swimming practice, so stretch those muscles and hit the pool."


	5. Chapter 5

Mike's eyes slowly swept over the body in front of him – Kate's. He watched as she stripped off her shorts and pulled her t-shirt over her head and dumped it on the bench. He watched as she walked over to one of the diving boards and bent over slightly, ready to dive and he soon found his eyes shifting from her shapely legs to her firm backside. He raised his eyebrows as she dived, disappearing below the surface before emerging, blonde hair slicked back from the water. It was like she was from that Bond movie when the 'Bond girl' would emerge out of the sea, and he found himself like James Bond, unable to look away.

"Why are you staring at me?" came Kate's voice, and all of a sudden his trance was broken and he couldn't continue staring at her.

Casting his gaze downwards he mumbled that he wasn't staring at her and turned around, sitting on the bench and removing his shoes.

Kate swam to the edge of the pool watching as Mike began to remove his shoes and then pulled down his shorts, his navy blue Speedos revealed. She raised her eyebrows slightly but then dropped them as he fingered the bottom of his t-shirt and pulled it over his head, his bare chest revealed. Feeling herself blush, she ducked beneath the water. When she re-emerged she came face to face with the man in question, their noses almost touching. Her eyes widened, her breathing hitched and her blush became deeper. She could feel his breath against her face, warm and calm. She could smell that scent of his that seemed to inhabit everything he owned and she felt her mind go blank.

"I'm going to win," he simply stated, smiling as she stumbled over her reply; then adding with a wink, "You look cuter than before though."

Kate was speechless. Turning away in the hopes of something to say, when she turned around again she was met with a completely different face.

"Nikki!" she cried. "Scare the crap out of me why don't you!"

"Sorry – but I couldn't help but notice that you were getting rather friendly with Mr Competition..."

"What?!" She looked over to where Mike had moved by the diving boards. He was talking with his mates, laughing, and every time he had a spare minute was looking at her. She blushed and turned back to Nikki whose face hadn't moved an inch in the time she had look away.

"Oh. My. God. You like him don't you?!"

"What? Nikki no! I don't like him! He was just being a jerk, saying that he was going to win and that I should give up! That was all! I was NOT getting friendly with him!" she angrily whispered back.

"Right...then why does he keep looking at you and smiling? And why for some unknown reason was he looking you up and down as you took off your clothes and dived into the pool?"

Kate's eyes widened in horror, but softened slightly as she smiled at the thought. Nikki smirked, replying with, "You totally like him. And whatever I don't care if you do; but before you go off and marry him, beat him at his own game so that he can wallow in the depressing thought that a girl beat a boy in what they do best."

"Ok...weird...uh, Nik, why don't you go over to the benches and sit, or better yet, go talk to Josh – I think he's looking at you."

Nikki looked over to the boys where Josh was indeed look at her, smiling and quickly excusing himself from his friends so that he could go talk to her. They moved off to the side, talking to each other as if they were telling and receiving secrets.

Kate smiled in triumph before quickly moving out of the way as Mike dived into the pool. He emerged some two metres from where he had hit the water and began to swim towards her. She leaned back against the edge, propping her elbows up against it and raising her eyebrows at him.

"Is something wrong Commander Flynn?" she asked. "If you don't mind, I need some personal space."

"I just wanna talk," he replied, imitating her position.

"Huh. Right."

"What? It's true! Can't we just talk without fighting?"

"I quite remember that _you_ were the one who fought with _me_ – _not_ the other way around. And I also remember that you didn't give a crap about what happened three years ago." She gave him a sickly sweet smile before it fell and she glared at him.

"Look, Kate, I didn't mean that. I don't regret the summer we shared, but, we were young and we didn't know what love was – I don't even know if I would even call what we had love."

"Well then if I wasn't in love why does my heart hurt every time I see or think of you?" She said it quietly as to avoid a scene. She looked down, a small blush warming up her cheeks.

Mike didn't instantly respond, instead slowly reaching out to touch her shoulder in comfort, in an apology. But he stopped and allowed his arm to fall into the water, emitting a small a splash.

He sighed, looking down too, but then looking up he met her gaze as she looked up too and smiled. "Look, I don't know the answer, maybe one day I will, but I've got a lifetime to find the answer and when I do I'll find you and answer your question." He laughed. "Maybe you've been reading too much Austen," he added, laughing at the memory of when they first met.

"Look, can we just get on with it? Will you give me back my personal space now?" she asked, gesturing her hand between the _very_ close space between them.

"Sorry." He moved back a little and stayed there, as if waiting for something else.

Kate smiled awkwardly, pausing a minute before swimming away.

Mike watched her swim away, his breathing deep, the close confines between them causing a rush of adrenaline to rush through his entire body. He felt himself redden slightly as she looked back over her shoulder and he turned away to swim back to his friends.

A whistle was blown and Commodore Williams indicated for the students to make their way towards him at one end of the pool. Mike came to a rest at the edge, Pete, Josh and Chris on one side of him while Kate swam to this other side, being careful to keep a safe distance between them.

"Okay, gentlemen...and lady," added Commodore Williams, nodding towards Kate, "welcome to the WCNA swim test. Today you will only be _training_, so please, don't take it _too_ seriously." He looked pointedly at Mike and then at Kate. "Yes, it _is_ only four hundred metres, but please...IT. IS. JUST. TRAINING."

"Aye Sir," they chorused.

"Good. Now, I know that they're a more people than lanes, so can I please have two people to volunteer to wait until everyone else have finished?"

Mike and Kate instantly raised their hands. Commodore Williams nodded and indicated with his hand to get out of the pool. The two of them obliged and swam towards the steps. Mike gestured for Kate to get out first and she smiled sweetly at him before getting out, giving Mike a good view of her backside. He smiled to himself, cocking his head to the side as to get a different angle before following her out.

Kate walked over to where Nikki was sitting on the benches. Wrapping her towel around her shoulders, she sat, Mike joining them. Kate threw him a glare before looking away. Nikki crossed her arms, annoyed with the looks that Mike and Kate were throwing over her slumped form. Groaning slightly, she stood up, going poolside to cheer Josh on, leaving Mike and Kate glaring at each other without the third person.

"You're going to lose Commander," said Kate, shifting her position.

"Am I now? Who said so?" he asked, shifting closer.

"I did, of course."

"And what reason do you have backing you up?"

"The reason that girls are better than boys..." She leaned closer, "and you know that."

"Do I now?"

Kate's eyes narrowed and she continued to lean, suddenly pulling back as Nikki came back and sat herself between them. She smiled at them both before jumping up and down as Josh touched the wall first, Pete and Chris coming a close second and everyone else trailing behind.

Commodore Williams blew his whistle as the last person touched the wall. "Everybody out!" he shouted. He waved Mike and Kate over. "Your turn."

They stood and Mike smirked. "Good luck," he said with a wink.

"You're the one who'll need it," Kate replied, stepping up onto the diving board.

Mike did the same and shook his head. They leaned, ready to dive. The whistle was blown and they dived, both emerging a few metres away from the diving boards. They both kicked, falling into comfortable rhythms before starting to battle it out, Kate getting the upper hand for the first fifty metres before Mike caught up and began to lead.

Kate mentally growled as she turned her head for a breath, seeing nothing but Mike's kicking feet. As they came to turn for the last fifty metres, she began to pull forward; bringing herself level, they began to sprint.

In less than half a minute the sprint was over and two tired heads bobbed up, eager eyes looking expectantly at Commodore Williams. He gave them a small smile, a sigh escaping his lips. In one moment Kate knew who'd won.

"Damn."


	6. Chapter 6

**William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 6

"Hey, good race."

Kate turned around, Mike standing in front of her, a smile on his face. She growled slightly, still disappointed with the swimming race. Forcing herself to be a gracious loser, she raised her hand. Mike looked down at it surprised, and slowly raised his own to shake it.

As their hands came together, Mike could've sworn he felt a spark of electricity between them. They paused a minute, their hands entwined as time stopped around them, each person caught in the other's eyes. A minute later, Kate broke the moment, taking away her hand and looking down as a slight blush coloured her pale cheeks.

"Well, good race," she mumbled, walking away.

Mike frowned, quickly stepping forward to grab her hand before she could get away. Turning her around, he held her in place with both hands. She winced, looking up to meet his gaze.

"Don't just walk away from me like that," he murmured, his breath tickling her cheek.

"I can walk away whenever I want," she replied, casting her gaze down.

Mike removed his hands from her shoulders, bringing them stiffly to his sides as she continued to look down. Looking away too, he sighed, nodding. She didn't look up, just nodding in silent acknowledgement before turning and walking away.

"Good race," she muttered again.

---

"Oh. My. God. Elections for school captain are going up _soon_ and guess who's going for it!" cried Nikki, bouncing up and down excitedly beside Kate as they walked.

"Oh, I don't know... could it be one Commander Mike Flynn?" Kate replied, knowing full well that it was. It was becoming increasingly hard to not see his face plastered up on walls around the campus, other girls giggling over his good looks and charm as they passed a poster saying 'Vote No. 1 Mike Flynn.'

"Nope!" Nikki shook her head, a secretive smile upon her face. "Someone _much_ closer to home," she hinted.

Kate frowned, becoming confused. "You?" she asked, giving her a sideways glance.

"Keep guessing."

Kate sighed in frustration, her impatient side becoming apparent. Stopping, she turned to look at Nikki, whose smug expression continued to tease her. "Nikki, if you don't tell me, I am going to slap you across the head until you do."

Nikki laughed, knowing it was an empty threat; but still keeping in mind that Kate was full of surprises, she obliged, "_You_ are!"

Kate's eyes widened in horror. "What?!" she yelled.

Nikki shrugged. "When the nominations were going around, I saw that you didn't put your name in, so _I _did it for you! I seriously thought that you were going to go for it, but when you didn't I was shocked. I presumed you forgot."

"Nikki, I didn't nominate myself because I _don't_ want to run for school captain," Kate replied, rolling her eyes at Nikki's child-like expression.

"But Kate!" Nikki whined, drawing out the one syllable name.

Kate sighed, picking up her pace as the hot summer sun beat down on her. Nikki huffed, trying to keep up while still explaining all the things she could do as school captain.

"You can get back at Mike for beating you in the swimming and prove to him that girls are still better than boys; show all your leadership skills; you can be the best school captain in this school's history! Come on Kate, please?"

Kate gave her a weird look, raising an eyebrow slowly. "When are the speeches being made?"

Nikki gave her a sheepish look and Kate's face slowly fell. "After lunch."

"What?! Nikki, _after lunch_ is in twenty minutes! Why didn't you tell me earlier? At least I would've had time to flip out at you _and _prepare a speech!"

"Ha! Admit it then, you _do_ want to be school captain!" Nikki accused, a grin making its way onto her face.

Kate gave her a sideways glance, a frustrated sigh escaping her lips as she started to take out a pen and paper.

"What are you doing?" asked Nikki, eyeing her friend as she slumped at the base of a tree. "Are you okay?"

"Shh." She was too engrossed and angry with writing her speech to respond with anything else, and as she put thoughts to paper, all she couldn't think about was getting it over and done with.

---

"And now our last candidate Lieutenant Kate McGregor." There was a small round of applause as Kate made her way to the front of the hall. Looking down at the piece of paper she clutched in her hand, she gazed upwards to meet the criticising eyes of the other students. Giving them a small smile she began.

"Um, as you've all just been told, my name is Lieutenant Kate McGregor. I've had plenty of leadership experience before, previously becoming the youngest captain at my previous school. I also led various sporting teams as well as having been midshipman at my cadet unit, TS Voyager, down in Melbourne.

"Being in cadets I obtained a large amount of knowledge about leadership and teamwork, and have been tested on both accounts before in both simple and difficult circumstances. I've never failed to leave anyone behind when a boat has capsized, and I was a trusted member of sailing team, bringing the unit into first place on several occasions.

"I'm not the sort of person who will let up easily when faced with a challenge, and I do not tolerate loosing, although I think myself to be a gracious loser when I do fall into that position." She looked over at Mike who smiled at her before she looked away, blushing slightly as she did.

"Overall I am a kind and mostly patient person who is a team player and willing to try anything. I am a great listener and although at times demanding, my heart is always in the right place. So please, vote for me as this year's school captain."

Another round of applause erupted around the hall, this time louder and more enthusiastically. Kate gave them a small smile before walking from the stage and taking her seat next to Mike, who, upon her return, whispered in her ear, "Good speech. I'd vote for you."

Kate raised her eyebrows at him, confused if whether or not he was being sarcastic. "Thanks," she replied hesitantly, turning away from him to face the officer in charge.

"That concludes the speeches for today. Good luck to all of you who went for the two school captaincy positions and now, if you could all please fill in the voting ballot that you all received, we'll elect our school captains. When you've all handed in your ballots, the votes will be counted and the school captains will be announced on Wednesday next week."

---

_One week later..._

"Well they took their own sweet time counting the votes didn't they?" Nikki rolled her eyes, scoffing as a voice from behind them spoke.

"Congratulations Kate."

They both stopped, turning to look at who the voice belonged._ Captain_ Mike Flynn. He gave them a smile before stepping forward and asking, "Can I please speak to Kate for a minute...? Alone?" he added as Nikki continued to stand with them.

"Huh? Oh, sure... Kate, I'll be in the library... studying." She gave a quick wave before disappearing through glass doors.

Kate turned to look at Mike, his blue eyes lighting up at the sight of her small smile. "Congratulations," she said, reaching out a hand to shake his.

He shook it; the contact made between causing sparks to fly like the hand shake shared after the swimming race. Pulling back, he stepped back to take her in.

"Was there something you wanted to speak to me about?" Kate asked, breaking the silence they had become engulfed in.

"Huh? Oh yeah, my fath– Admiral Flynn would like to see us in his office."

"Now?"

"Yeah."

Kate nodded, slowly willing herself to move forward and walk to the Admiral's office. Walking slowly, Mike fell into step beside her, their hands bumping against each other every now and again.

"Do you know what the Admiral wants to see us about?" Kate asked, glancing up to look at Mike.

"No. I'm presuming something to do with the school captaincy, but other than that, not really." He smiled, a thought coming to him. "He might just tell me that girls are better than boys." He looked down at her, a smirk on his lips. "A little birdie told me that _you_ didn't even know that you'd been nominated for school captain."

"Nikki told you?"

"No, Josh told me."

"Whom _Nikki_ told." Kate rolled her eyes, going quiet as they entered the main building.

Taking off their hats, they walked along the corridors, their footsteps echoing on the stone floor beneath them. As they went further and further along the hall, the amount of paintings increased, and soon there were more than just paintings, but models of boats and photographs, as well as the odd glassed hat and uniform.

At last reaching the end, they knocked on the door and a voice beckoned them to enter. Mike was to cross the threshold, quickly followed by Kate who closed the door as she entered.

The Admiral was seated at his desk, his eyes on the computer screen in front of him. Looking up he greeted them with a smile, before standing and saluting. Mike and Kate did the same, sitting down as Admiral Flynn did too.

"First of all, I would like to congratulate you both on your captaincies. I heard that both your speech were well done; particularly _yours_ Midshipman McGregor." He looked at Kate, who blushed.

"Thank you Sir," she replied.

He nodded in acknowledgement before continuing, "As school captains, there come responsibilities such as attending functions, representing and upholding the reputation of this school and various other things. Remember that you cannot let this school down; you must be a role model to the younger students as well as a leader to them all. If either of of you are reported of letting the school down, or even putting a toe over the thick line of rules, your captaincy will be removed. Do I make myself clear on that?"

"Aye Sir," they chimed.

"Is that all Sir?" added Mike, getting ready to stand.

"Ah, one more thing Mike; there's a dinner on Saturday night that all school leaders have to attend... that includes _both_ of you; so I suggest that when you're dismissed you iron your whites. I'll give you more details on Friday, but for now I just need for you to know about it."

"Aye Sir."

Admiral Flynn nodded. "Okay, you're dismissed."

They stood immediately, walking to the door without a word passed between them. Kate left first, not bothering to wait for Mike as he paused a minute, his hand hovering above the door knob. Reaching down to turn the handle, Admiral Flynn spoke out, his tone indicating a father, and not the admiral the stripes told he was.

"I'm proud of you Mike. Congratulations on your captaincy."


	7. Chapter 7

**William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 7

_Saturday Night_

_Attire: Summer uniform i.e. whites_

_Time: 1900 hours_

They stood at the entrance gate, their patience being tested as the warm summer breeze blew around them and their waiting time increased. Mike looked down at his watch, letting out a frustrated sigh as the minute hand continued ticking over.

"They're late," he muttered.

"Of course they are," Kate mumbled back, her shoulders beginning to slump. "It's stupid for them to tell us to turn up early while they come as late as they want."

"Yep." He looked down at his shoes, rocking back and forth as they continued to wait.

The sound of footsteps on gravel behind them brought them back to a formal stance, and they instantly snapped to attention.

The Admiral comes from behind them, circling each before allowing them to stand easy. "I'm glad to see you took my advice and _ironed_ your uniform Mike," said the Admiral.

Mike's lips twitched, attempting to hold back a smile; but like always, it couldn't be hidden and all too soon his pearly whites were showing.

"I'm sure mum will be proud," he replied.

Admiral Flynn raised an eyebrow, coming to a halt at his son's side, just as five other officers came down the drive.

"Evening Sirs, Ma'am," they acknowledged, standing on either side of them, waiting for the arrival of the vehicle taking them all to the function.

"They're late," one of them stated.

"Yes, they are," replied Admiral Flynn, looking at his watch and mumbling about calling them.

"Ah, here they are," said Kate, gesturing to the black limousines coming down the driveway.

"Who ordered the limousines?" asked Mike, raising his eyebrows at the approaching vehicles.

"Well I sure as hell didn't; must've been the organisers of this fancy do. All they told me was that we'd have to wait at the gates for a car to pick us up," answered Mike's father.

"Huh. Well uh, since there are eight people and three limos, that's three people in the first and second, so I guess that Captain McGregor and I will go in the last one."

Kate gave him a sideways look, raising an eyebrow as his words sunk in. _What the hell is he doing?_

Admiral Flynn considered it a moment before nodding. "Yeah, okay."

The group headed in their different directions, each getting into their respective limos before they all drove off in a long line.

---

They sat side by side in silence, the whirring of the engine the only sound around them. Occasionally their shoulders would bump together, but other than that, no contact was made. Ten minutes into the trip and it was Kate who finally decided to break the silence.

"Why did you say we would go in the last limo? I would have been perfectly fine with going with your father."

Mike shrugged, a small smile making its way onto his face. "You know... since we're alone... I think it's time we talk properly about... three years ago."

"I don't think so."

"Kate, we can't just leave it. Sure, it wasn't exactly love, but it sure as hell left a massive imprint on our minds and hearts."

"Mike, we _did_ speak about it; remember my first day? You snubbed me off and walked away. Now it's _my_ turn to return the favour."

"Oh come on Kate that was _barely_ talking."

"Actually it was. We talked about it and now we don't need to. Conversation finished."

"Kate, seriously, what is wrong with you and our past? You said so yourself that you _loved_ me and that I returned your affection, so why can't we speak about it now?"

"Mike, just – I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Why? Why don't you want to speak about the past? Us? Our relationship?"

"Because I _still_ love you!" she finally shouted, her chest heaving as she let out her frustration.

He instantly quietened. Looking away, thoughts ran through his mind. _Kate still loves me. Love._ He looked back her, his blues eyes meeting her green.

"I don't know what to say."

"Yeah... I expected you to say that."

The limo slowed to a stop and the door opened. Mike was first out before he handed out Kate, whose stony look told him that there was nothing more to add to their little talk. In an instant, Admiral Flynn appeared at their sides, a wide smile on his face.

"I suppose we'd better get this show started," he said, leading the way into the grand building before them.

"Who's hosting this again?" asked Mike, looking up to glance at the lit windows.

"Uh, I think it was the Chief of the Defence Force... or his rep – I can't remember," answered Rear Admiral Clayton, the assistant headmaster.

"Pfft, it was probably just the Air Force – honestly, they can't march to save themselves," replied Commodore Grey. "They probably want marching lessons."

The group laughed, quieting as a man greeted at the doorway. "Good evening gentlemen, ma'am. Can I please have the name of the group you are representing?"

"William Creswell Naval Academy," answered Mike, cutting in before his father could.

"Ah yes, you have been expected. Please, follow me." The man turned, going through a pair of glass double doors before leading them up a staircase. They could hear music coming somewhere from their right, and they weren't surprised when the man lead them towards it. "Just through here." He gestured through another set of double doors.

The group thanked him and went through the doors, almost immediately being greeted by a man in white.

"Good evening Flynn; it's a pleasure to see you again! I see that you've brought more company – the more the merrier I always say," greeted the man.

"It's a pleasure to see you again too Crane; yes, I've brought along the heads of our departments, as well as our two school captains."

The man turned to smile at the rest of the group, his smile growing as his eyes rested on Mike. "You must be Mike Flynn – or should I say_ Captain_ Mike Flynn; I've heard a lot about you from your father Mike. He never stops talking about you – I daresay I have to ask him to be quiet otherwise we'd never get anything done." He gave a hearty laugh before turning his eyes towards Kate. "You must be Captain Kate McGregor."

"Yes Sir, I am," she replied, saluting.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Captain McGregor; it's always good to see a woman like yourself amongst a group of men."

Kate blushed, ducking her head slightly. "And it is a privilege, Sir, to be amongst them; especially to meet you, as I myself wish to be Chief of Navy one day."

Vice Admiral Crane smiled again. "I'm sure that one day you will, with determination and excellence."

"Thank you Sir."

"Well then, I suppose we had better go amongst the rest of the people – I know for a fact that the air force a little bit stiff tonight; apparently their marching didn't go so well during their parade this afternoon."

Commodore Grey snickered, his eyes carefully looking over at the sea of blue on one side of the room. "They don't look very happy," he commented.

Mike laughed, raising an eyebrow as a blonde from Richard William Air Force Academy – the Air Force's equivalent of WCNA – smiled at him suggestively.

Kate gave him a sideways glance, her own eyebrow rising as she looked between Mike and the air force blonde. "Ahem."

Mike looked away, eyeing Kate as her eyes criticised him. "What? Jealous are we?" he asked, sounding amused.

"We're here to represent our school, _not_ go chatting up every blonde in the room," she replied, her tone icy.

"Which includes you," he stated, a smirk on his lips.

"Ha, very funny." _Thick isn't he? I forgot that... how the hell could he have forgotten our talk in the limo?_

"You don't sound very enthusiastic Kate."

"That's because I'm not. Now, do me a favour and be quiet."

He laughed. "Come on; you know me well enough to know I won't stay quiet long."

She gave him a sickly sweet smile before looking away, her expression causing the Admiral to ask if she was okay.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine," she answered, relaxing her expression.

"Are you sure?" he pushed.

Kate smiled, assuring him that she was fine. The Admiral nodded, turning back to talk to RADM Clayton. She sighed, mentally shaking her head as they sat around their designated table; unfortunately, she was seated next to Mike...

"Can we just get one thing straight?"

"Yeah...?" He was cautious in his tone, unsure where the conversation was about to go. With most of their conversations, it headed towards a cliff where it usually jumped into the ocean below.

She sighed again. "Please... don't bring up the past..."

He smiled softly, thankful that they weren't going to argue, although that wasn't really a guaranteed fact. "Yeah... okay... I won't."


	8. Chapter 8

**William Creswell Naval Academy** – Chapter 8

"When do you think the speeches will finish?" Mike mumbled, sinking even further into his seat.

"I don't know..." Kate murmured back, her eyes drooping as the Chief of Defence Force's speech ticked over into its twentieth minute.

"Kate sit up." Mike nudged her slightly. She didn't move, instead closing her eyes and almost leaning forward to rest her head on the table. "Kate... sit up!" he whispered.

She grumbled, pushing him away gently. The audience broke into a loud applause and Kate's head jerked up, her hands instantly coming together.

"I'm up! I'm up..." She blinked, the fog lifting as the Chief of Defence Force left the stage and the band began playing again.

"Tired huh?" he asked, smiling as she rubbed her eyes and struggled to hold in a yawn, failing miserably and instantly covering her mouth with the back of her hand. She nodded, leaning back into her chair. "Didn't you get any sleep last night?"

She gave him a pointed look. "I'm yawning right?"

"Touché," he acknowledged.

The band picked up a steady beat and he instantly got an idea. Standing up, he held out a hand. "Dance with me?"

She looked up at his blue gaze, a small smile forming. "Yeah, sure... why not?" She placed her hand in his and he led her to the middle of the dance floor. He placed a hand on her waist and began to lead her in time to the music.

Kate began to hum along with the music, the familiar tune sparking a losing battle in her heart. She could feel his eyes observing her, waiting patiently until she allowed her gaze to meet his. Hesitating, she looked up.

He was smiling at her, calm and almost lovingly. It was like a spell had been cast and she couldn't look away, his sapphire eyes intense and mesmerising.

"Kate..." he whispered, bringing their bodies closer.

They were standing so close they could feel each other's breath on their cheeks. Tugging at her hand, Mike led her away from the dance floor and out to the balcony, where a few of the army and air force academy representatives were "talking". Pulling her towards him, he rested a hand on her back and allowed the other to stroke her cheek gently. Leaning down, their foreheads came to rest against each other.

"Mike... what are we doing?" she murmured, her eyes fluttering slightly as she met his gaze.

His lips inched closer to hers. "I don't know..."

"Ahem."

They instantly broke apart, each person flushed. Stepping back two more paces they turned to look at who had interrupted them. Admiral Flynn stood in the doorway, his eyebrow raised.

"Getting a little cosy are we?" he asked. They didn't respond. "You both know about the navy's fraternisation rule don't you?"

"Aye Sir," they replied.

"But dad," added Mike, "technically we're still in school."

The Admiral smiled. "I'm kidding son, just kidding. You two kids go back to... um... doing whatever you were doing before I interrupted – but I want you inside for the rest of the speeches."

They nodded, and Kate breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought he was going to reprimand us."

"My dad would never reprimand us for something like that." He grinned. "He met my mum at WCNA."

She didn't respond, only blushing bright pink. _We almost kissed_. "Um, I think we should go back inside – like your father said... we have to go in for the rest of the speeches."

Mike looked away disappointedly, silently cursing his dad for interrupting them. When he looked back at her, his smile was pained. Gesturing back towards the hall, he fell into step beside Kate as they walked back to their designated table. Taking their seats, the lights dimmed and the Chief of Defence stood once more. Kate groaned slightly, already getting ready to sink into her seat.

"Do you think we'll get back before tomorrow morning?" she mumbled, rolling her eyes as another bout of speeches began.

Mike shrugged, stifling a yawn as his own posture began to falter. "I bet we'll be back after midnight though... there are still presentations and more speeches... and other things..." He yawned again.

"Looks like you're tired now."

He gave her a tired smile, groaning as his father told him to sit up. "Dad, can't we just go back to school? I'm tired, and I want to sleep!"

"Mike, you know we can't do that until this is all over."

"Kate's tired too."

Admiral Flynn looked from Mike to Kate, taking in their tired forms, their now wrinkled uniform, and the begging in their eyes to let them go home and sleep.

"You can go for a walk; the cold air will wake you up."

"Yeah... sure..." Mike excused himself quietly and slipped out the double doors. Kate hesitatingly did the same, following Mike out the door and finding him waiting for her at the bottom of the staircase.

"Wanna walk?"

"That's why we're out here." She looked down at her clasped hands, blushing as he touched her shoulder.

"I should probably steal back that kiss before someone interrupts us again." At his words, she looked up, her blush becoming deeper. Slowly, she broke into a smile and raised an eyebrow.

"Not this time, Mike."


	9. Chapter 9

**William Creswell Naval Academy** – Chapter 9

_One week later..._

"Mike's looking at you again," Nikki whispered in Kate's ear.

Kate looked up from her place in the library, catching Mike's glance before he looked away. She shrugged, looking down again.

Nikki frowned, her gaze going from Mike to Kate and back again. She raised an eyebrow curiously. What was going on between them two? Every time she looked at them, there seemed to be an invisible barrier that stopped them from making contact, and yet all they ever did was steal glances at each other from across the room.

"Ok, Kate; _now_ you have to tell me what on earth happened last week at that formal do, 'cause seriously, you two are acting really weird." She slapped the book Kate was reading, shut. Giving her a pointed stare, she crossed her arms and leaned back; she wasn't going to give up easily – she would get the goss on what happened at Kate and Mike's formal function if it took her a whole a month.

"Nik, it is none of your business what happened last Friday," mumbled Kate, reopening her book to its previous page.

"Aww, come on Kate!" Nikki leaned in closer, her eyes wide with excitement. "Tell me all the little details and I'll tell you something that Mike said to me yesterday." She gave her a mischievous grin.

Kate looked up then, her eyes narrowing. "What did he tell you?" Her tone was cold and her eyes shifted to look up at the man in question.

"Oh, I can't tell you that Kate; not until _you_ tell me what happened."

"That's blackmail Nik," Kate replied through gritted teeth.

"I know; but I also know that you _want_ to know what Mike said to me about last week." She smirked, watching as Kate's eyes lightened slightly. "I know you well Kate McGregor."

"Fine." Kate glared at her one more time before shutting her book. "We danced, Mike almost kissed but then his father interrupted us; we talked, we went for a short walk and he almost kissed me again – although that time, it was me to interrupt. End of story."

Nikki's mouth fell open at her words, shock overcoming her. "Mike kissed you?" she managed to say.

"_Almost_ Nikki, there is a difference. Now, if you will please excuse me, I've got a sports meeting to attend."

"Wait," she stood up, "I'm coming."

Kate rolled her eyes, leading the way out of the library before making her way to the oval, Nikki hot on her heels.

"Kate, seriously, did Mike make a move on you?" Nikki panted, still trying to catch up.

"Nikki, I don't think we should be talking about this; you know people like to gossip. We didn't even kiss."

Nikki sighed. "Lucky you didn't; his girlfriend would've flipped it at both of you," she mumbled.

Kate almost choked and she stopped in her tracks, turning around to face her best friend. "Excuse me? _Girlfriend_?" Shock was written all over her face.

Nikki reddened._ Oh shit_. "Um... yeah... Mike has a girlfriend... he didn't tell you?"

"Nik, you know better than anyone he wouldn't tell me that." She paused. "Nikki, you knew he was flirting with me, and I with him, heck you even in encouraged it – why didn't you tell me that he had a girlfriend?" Her tone was hurt, and her eyes were begging for an answer.

"Kate... I'm sorry... I–"

"Nik, just... don't worry about it." She shook her head, her expression changing. "I'll just have to beat him in the races next month." She gave Nikki a small smile, before turning around and heading out into the hot sun.

Nikki watched as Kate joined up with Commodore Williams and the other advanced students – that is, all except for Mike, who just walked past her.

"I know what you and Kate almost did last Friday night," she called out.

He turned, his eyebrow raised. "Kate told you that?"

"Yeah; she also knows that you have a girlfriend," she stated bluntly.

He paled at her words. "What?"

"I accidentally let it slip that you have a girlfriend; I thought you told her you were going out with that _other_ girl."

In an instant he was gone, running out to the oval where Kate was talking with Commodore Williams. Nikki bit her lip, feeling guilty as she watched Kate give Mike the cold shoulder. Sighing, she joined them on the oval.

"I'm sorry to have to announce this – oh, good afternoon Lieutenant Caetano – but we've had to push the date for the individual fitness competition a few more months so that it fall in October; that way we'll have warm weather, rather than constant rain."

"That just means we get more time to train for it – it's no big deal," commented Kate, ignoring Mike's silent begging to give an explanation.

"I'm glad to see you're excited about that Kate; not many of boys look too enthusiastic about it," he added with a chuckle.

"I wonder why..."

---

"Kate, I don't understand how you can do that." Nikki looked from the book in Kate's hand and the footpath in front of them. "You're going to fall."

Kate rolled her eyes, lowering her book slightly. "I'm not going to fall." She spoke too soon. No sooner had she said that, she tripped over a raised piece of concrete, following forward towards the ground. Landing awkwardly, she raised her head to look up at Nikki's concerned, yet smug expression.

"Don't even think about saying it," she said quickly.

Nikki shrugged. "I'm not saying anything."

"Kate? Kate, are you okay?"

She groaned at the voice; the last thing she needed was _him_ asking her if she was okay. "I'm fine." Managing to get up carefully, she dusted the dirt off her jeans and brought her wrist up to look at it. _Damn_. Bruised, bulging and the pain _just_ starting to kick in.

"I think you've sprained your wrist Kate." Nikki's eyes were wide.

"Yep."

"Here, let me take a look." Mike took her hand in his, but Kate was quick to yank it away. She cringed as pain overwhelmed her.

"I'll get the doctor to take a look at it at school," she replied, her eyes drifting to look at the girl standing behind Mike. At that first look, it dawned at her that that girl was Mike's unmentioned girlfriend.

Mike's eyes followed her direction and he let out a low 'oh'. Forcing himself to smile at her, he introduced the girl behind him. She stepped forward.

"This is my girlfriend: Ursula Morrell."


	10. Chapter 10

**William Creswell Naval Academy **_– Chapter 10_

"It's not broken, just a sprain; you'll have to keep that icepack on it for a little while and then take it off. Then you'll need to rest it for a couple of days – which means _no_ training, that will just stress it out," emphasised the doctor.

Kate sighed, looking down at her bandaged wrist. Nikki gave her a small smile, and a shrug of the shoulder. "Could've been worse."

Exciting the doctor's office, they walked back to their quarters. "Nikki, it _was_ worse; not only did I fall and sprain my wrist, I met Mike's girlfriend! His _girlfriend_!" She huffed, slamming their shared room door open and then shut. Turning around, she asked, "Did you ever meet her before today?"

Nikki shook her head. "Nope. The only think I'd ever heard of Mike's mysterious girlfriend was that she was blonde and didn't go to our school. I'd also heard that they met when he was in Melbourne with his dad three years ago."

"Three years ago?" Kate whispered. Three years ago she was _still_ in Melbourne. Three years ago he was _in_ Melbourne. _The bastard came back! _She let out a shriek of annoyance, collapsing on her bed.

"Gosh, PMS much?" Nikki laughed, stopping as Kate's eyes turned to her. The expression that Kate wore was unusual; it wasn't the usual determined one Nikki had been so used to seeing. In truth, Kate looked hurt, wounded. "Kate, are you alright?"

She whimpered, fighting to keep away the tears behind her eyes. Nikki's expression softened and she moved over to sit at the end of Kate's bed. "Oh Katie... did something happen between you and Mike before?"

Kate sat up, and bringing her knees to her chin, she began to rock. "We knew each other _five _years ago – he was down in Melbourne for the summer, and his parents were thinking of moving there... But um..." She wiped away the tears that began trickling down her face. "His parents ended up deciding against the move... Mike was so against it they had to drag him away in the end..."

"So basically you were sweethearts?"

She managed a short laugh in between her tears. "We were hardly sweethearts; strictly no kissing. We were twelve Nik, it was just hanging out like friends – it was only a peck on the lips."

Nikki giggled. "You still kissed! Aww, that's _so_ cute!"

Kate blushed. Talking about her summer with Mike was weird. "Yeah..." She sighed, turning her face away to look at the wall.

"You really did love him didn't you?" Her voice was quiet.

"I was twelve – I didn't even know what love was," Kate answered, her tone equally as quiet.

"You're never too young to know what love is," Nikki replied, her words sounding like words of wisdom.

"Yeah, foolish love."

"Love is love Kate; if you loved him, and still do... you never know... I saw the way he looked at you when you fell."

Kate shook her head, going into a state of denial. "I don't care anymore; I've cried enough tears over him and I don't need any more."

"Yeah."

"I'm going to beat him."

"I know you will Kate." Nikki caught Kate's eye and they burst into laughter. "Mike Flynn is going down!"

---

_He's not going down._ Kate hit the back of her head against the tree, wincing as the pain shot through. She growled slightly as he came over and sat down beside her. "Go away _Flynn_."

At the sound of his last name, he cringed. She really did hate him. _Idiot._ "I just wanted to explain myself."

"I don't want to hear it."

He sat down beside her, leaning his head back against the tree. "Please Kate; I didn't mean to piss you off."

She almost choked as his words. She turned to look at him, her expression stone cold. "Piss me off? You did more than just piss me off Mike – you _hurt_ me."

He sighed, closing his eyes. "I'm so sorry Kate." He opened his eyes again, turning his head to gaze into the green ones he always saw at night.

A calm expression had graced her features, and her eyes were glistening with unshed tears. "Why did you go back to Melbourne three years ago?" she asked, her voice quiet.

"It was a holiday; my parents remembered that they actually enjoyed the summer we had in Melbourne and so we went down again for Christmas and New Years." He avoided answering the question he knew she wanted answered: _Why didn't you visit me? _

"Why didn't you visit me?" She knew that he knew that she wanted the question answered, but she also knew that he wouldn't answer it without some pushing.

He closed his eyes again, wanting to get away from now and instead go back to before. "I was scared," he admitted. "I thought that you would take one look at me and think: 'what a jerk for coming back.' I didn't know what you would think, and that's what scared the hell out of me."

"It wouldn't be natural if you knew what I thought," Kate replied. "_I_ don't even know what I would've thought."

"I'm sorry I didn't see you; I'm a fool."

"Yeah, you are." She paused, thinking of all the things she could say but didn't want to. In the end she chose to confront him about the one thing she couldn't understand. "Why didn't you tell me you had a girlfriend Mike?"

"Would you believe me if I said I forgot?"

"Don't even try to be funny with me Mike; obviously I am not in the mood."

"Sorry." He sighed, running a hand through his hair – a habit he had been trying to break, but to no avail. "I – I guess that I... that I... – In truth? I don't know. Whenever I'm with you all thoughts of me having a girlfriend completely slip away. With you I'm a different person. I'm still the same competitive guy that I'll always be, but you make me feel like there's forever in this world. Everything stops and all I can think about is you and me."

For the first time that afternoon, a smile graced her features. "You can be a real romantic when you want to be – but I'm still not going to forgive you for what you've done."

"I don't expect you to; but is there some way that you might?"

"I think it's my turn to say sorry now... Mike..."


	11. Chapter 11

**William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 11

"Ah, school camp tomorrow!" Nikki stretched out on the grass, enjoying the rare warmth of the sunlight. "Are you going Kate?"

"Uh, how many times have I answered this question?" Kate shook her head, rolling her eyes. "I _have_ to go Nik – I'm school captain, remember?" Her gaze didn't shift; not to Nikki nor to the man approaching them._ God, why don't you just leave me alone?!_ She concentrated hard on the essay in front of her, scribbling down words and crossing some out. Bringing her pen between her teeth, she sat a moment in silence, thinking of what to write next. That was when _he_ decided to speak.

"Hi Kate; Nik," he greeted, raising his hand in a lazy wave.

Nikki returned it, giving him a wide grin before closing her eyes and dozing off into a light nap. Kate turned to look up at him, squinting against the sun. "What are you doing here?" she asked, her eyes following him as he sat down beside her.

"I just wanted to say hi," he replied.

"You've said hi and yet you're still here." She looked back down at her essay, scribbling out another sentence.

"Do you need help?" he offered.

"No."

"Are you going to remain angry at me for the rest of the year?"

There was snort from the presumably sleeping form of Nikki; clearly, she was awake and listening. Both Mike and Kate turned in her direction. An eye opened and she failed to keep in a grin. Standing up, she put both hands forwards in a gesture of defence.

"Okay, I'm leaving; see you in class Kate." She gave a short wave and a slight eye roll before walking in the direction of the main buildings.

Kate looked down from where Nikki had been and turned her gaze back to Mike, her expression the same as before. "And what if I am?"

"What?" A look of confusion crossed his face.

"What if I am going to remain angry at you?" she growled, her temper rising slightly.

"Then I'll do everything I can to make it up to you," he answered, giving her a cheeky smile.

"I don't think so – now, if you'll please stand up and walk in the direction of the lake, I'd much appreciate it." She gave him a sickly sweet smile before turning away.

"I'm not going to leave you know," he stated.

"I've realised." She gave a frustrated sigh, throwing her pen down. "I give up," she mumbled, "I'll finish it tomorrow."

"What's wrong?"

Kate growled, standing up hastily and dropping her books. She let out another frustrated sigh. She bent to pick them up, but Mike was quick to grab them. He stood, cradling her books in his arm. He repeated his question, not intending to give back her books until she answered.

"Nothing's wrong; now give me back my books and get lost." She made a grab for her books, accidentally sweeping her hands against his in the process. Time stood still and both persons' movement stopped. "See you 'round," she mumbled, breaking the moment and taking back her books. She left in a rush, pulse racing and cheeks flushed.

Mike stood alone in an awkward manner, allowing his arms to fall ungraciously to his side as he watched Kate's retreating figure.

"I'll talk to you later then..." he murmured, turning and walking in the opposite direction.

---

_That evening..._

"Good evening, first of all I'd like to welcome you all tonight to this meeting." Admiral Flynn stood at the front of the auditorium, observing the large group of students. His eyes flickered to the front row to watch his son; beside him was Kate, her expression, one of annoyance. He could see her eyes shift to watch the gap between them, making sure that he was as far away from her as humanly possible whilst being squashed between two other people. Looking away somewhat reluctantly, he continued on with his talk.

"As you all know tomorrow morning we leave for our annual camp to Victoria. We'll be staying at HMAS Cerberus for the first week; and we will also be visiting a few cadet units in Melbourne. You will also receive a few hours of leave whilst we are in Melbourne for... recreational purposes." He eyed a group of girls, giggling amongst themselves. As he turned away, he caught a few words:

"... Billabong... Sportsgirl... boys..."

He shook his head, a ghost of a smile gracing his lips. It was quite clear that many of the girls would be spending their free time shopping and boy scouting, whilst the boys would be trying to impress and 'pick up chicks' – an expression he was still trying to get his head around. _A sign of changing times._

"I assume that all of you have packed accordingly, and have made sure all of your uniforms are in pristine condition." He raised an eyebrow at the low hum emitted from the crowd. "Remember you are all to wear your civvies. Wakey wakey will be piped at 0500 hours tomorrow morning. You should be changed and ready by 0515, by then you will proceed to the dining hall for breakfast. At 0545 hours you go back to your rooms and proceed to take your luggage outside. We leave for the airport at 0600 hours. Are we clear on that? I don't want to be waiting by the bus for someone because they forget their toothbrush. I want everyone packed and ready to go."

"Aye aye Sir," they chimed.

---

"_Call to hands, call to hands, call to hands, wakey wakey wakey."_

When the call was piped, the still silence of morning was disturbed as more than fifty students and instructors groaned and moaned before stumbling out of bed. Eyes were rubbed clear and beds were made up, before clothes were put on and hair brushed into place. By 0515 hours, all students and instructors were seated in the dining hall, bowls of cereal, plates of toast and cups of juice or coffee in front of them.

By 0545 hours everyone was filing out and getting luggage. At 0555 hours everyone was outside and freezing, luggage in hand and getting it loaded onto the shuttle buses sent for them. At 0600 hours, the buses were turning out the front gate and speeding down the highway, the seven thirty flight looming over the horizon.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note:**___Well lookie here, it's back after being on hiatus for a good five months :D I can't believe it either, lols. Anyways, because it's been soo long, you may as well read the previous chapters before reading this one. This fic will be updated every week until completed - maybe even twice a week if everything is written. There are four chapters left of this fanfic BTW._

* * *

**William Creswell Naval Academy** – Chapter 12

How she managed to score the seat next to Mike on their flight to Melbourne amazed her. She had specifically requested _not_ to have the seat next to him. She had wanted to sit next to Nikki and chat about what they were going to do, the guys they were going to see – all the typical girly things that any pair of females would talk about on a flight. But _no_, she ended up in the seat next to Mike; and not just any seat next to Mike, the _window_ seat next to Mike; meaning, there was Mike _and_ another person preventing her from escaping.

Closing her eyes, she sank lower in her seat, the altitude pressure sending a buzzing noise to her ears. She hated planes; the fact that one's ears were unusable after takeoff and touchdown until a day later irked her – one reason she wanted to join the navy and not the air force.

"What are you doing Kate?"

Well, at least one advantage came with not being able to hear. Having not answered however, she felt his hand tap her shoulder. Her eyes flew open at his touch. "What?!" Her voice was louder than she had expected and she received a few glances. "What?" she said more quietly, her tone still snappy.

"Are you okay?"

"Don't you dare repeat that question here," she warned. "You already know the answer."

"Do I?"

"Stop being cheeky Mike Flynn, otherwise you will get a lot more than me just snapping at you." She huffed, turning away from him to look out the window.

"I don't understand why you're angry with me anymore. I haven't done anything except ask if you're okay."

His statement angered her, and she whipped around in her seat. "You don't know why I'm angry at you? _Why?_" Her eyes widened and her nostrils flared. "You know very well mister, _why_ I am angry at you."

"A bit feisty Kate."

She glared him, her expression still stone cold. "Sometimes I wish I'd never met you." Her expression softened somewhat and she stood up, stretching.

He couldn't help himself then. Couldn't help the way his eyes skimmed over her figure, running up her legs and across the bare skin of her stomach that was exposed as she stretched. His eyes lingered on her lips a moment before his ears were met with Kate's stern voice.

"Looking at something?" Her eyes were accusing, but Mike could've sworn there was the faintest hint of a smile on her lips.

"No." His reply came out a little too fast, causing Kate to raise an eyebrow. Realising his mistake, he blush. Gathering his wits, he posed a question, "What do you think I was looking at?"

"You're a guy Mike, there's no need for _me_ to point out what _you_ were looking at." She smirked, laughter in her tone and eyes.

He gave her a challenging look and set out to wipe that grin off her lips. "Oh, but what if I want you to?"

"Mike!"

He mentally cringed as the voice of his father cut through their conversation. _And it was going_ so_ well_, he thought, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, dad?" he questioned, sinking into his seat. Kate simply grinned. She was mocking him, and quite clearly enjoying it. Humph. _Point to her_.

"Mike, there is to be no such talk whilst we are on this camp." His voice was stern yet lightened with humour. "And I'm telling you as your commanding officer, _not_ as your father. As your father I would say go ahead, but we are on a _school_ camp. The last thing we need is testosterone flying everywhere..."

Mike let out a small snigger, watching as Kate bit back a smile. She sat back in her seat, looking away from him again. Leaning over, he whispered in her ear. "You're a bad influence on me you know."

Her eyes slipped closed and she took a deep breath. Opening her eyes, she turned to look at him slowly. Forcing a smile, she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it upon a second thought.

Mike smirked. _Point to me_. "I'm right you know," he stated, only speaking loudly enough so that Kate could hear.

"I'm sure," she snapped, frowning in frustration.

"You really are a bad influence over me." His voice had turned husky, and she needed everything within her grasp to hold control over her actions and words, lest she fall for his charm. Again.

"I'm going for a walk," she finally announced. Pushing past her irritating neighbour (allowing him a good view of a certain part of her body...), and apologising to her fellow traveller, she walked to the other end of plane.

_Curse his goddamn charm._

---

Nikki frowned as Kate stormed past her. _Uh...?_ "Josh, would you mind? I just need to talk to Kate for a minute." She eased past her flying partner and made her way to the end of the plane. Leaning back against the restroom door, she waited for Kate to speak first.

"I think I'm falling for him all over again."

Nikki's relaxed form grew rigid in surprise. Her eyes widened significantly and she almost choked on her words when she opened her mouth to reply, "But I thought you said you were already falling in love with him. Don't you remember what happened at that formal thingo you two had to go to? You almost _kissed_, remember?"

"Yeah; but then I met his _girlfriend_ and it put me off completely." She slumped against the wall, sighing in frustration. "Why did I have to see him again Nik?"

She shrugged. "I wouldn't have a clue Kate. But... you never know – maybe you two were meant to meet again. I'm sure you've heard of fate before."

"You've been watching too many romantic comedies." Kate bit back the smile that was forming, but let it out as Nikki winked.

"Just loosen up a little Katie," she replied. "From the look on Mike's face when you tripped, I'm pretty sure he cares for you – a lot."

"Then why doesn't he show it to _me_?"

"He's a male."

"You blame all faults that guys make on the fact of them being male."

"I do," she admitted with a sigh. "I'm always right though."

* * *

**Author's Note:** _Also, please review :D Reading them really makes my day! _


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note:** _Updating early this time, just because it's Christmas :D Not really; it's because I'm rather bored sitting alone on the couch and staring at the clock... :( Anywho, hope you enjoy this part, and I hope that you're enjoying your Christmas :)_

**William Creswell Naval Academy** – Chapter 13

"Welcome to HMAS Cerberus."

The students from William Creswell Naval Academy stood at attention as the commanding officer of HMAS Cerberus paced in front of them.

"First off, I'd like to welcome any new people here today; and secondly, I would like to welcome back any previous personnel." He looked at the officers and then at Mike and Kate, smiling briefly before allowing his serious expression to take charge.

"Whilst you are here, everyone will be referred to as 'seaman'. Any house captains or department captains will be referred to as 'leading seaman' or 'leaders'; and your two school captains will hold the rank of 'midshipmen'. Your instructors will remain as they are. Does everyone understand?"

A chorus of, "Aye Sir," and feet coming together from the 'stand at ease' position echoed across the grounds.

"Good. Now, when you're dismissed, you have an hour to arrange yourselves and to settle in for the week. Squad, ho! Squad, dismissed!"

"I take you've been here before?" Nikki asked Kate once they had been dismissed and were tugging their luggage towards their sleeping quarters.

"Yes, many times with cadets," she replied, pushing open the door of the room they would share.

"And how long were you at cadets for?"

"Oh, about five years," she answered thoughtfully. "I was at Voyager until I moved up to Cairns where now, I'm at 'TS Creswell.'"

"And aren't you just proud to represent us," Nikki grinned, opening her suitcase and hanging up her uniforms in the wardrobe provided.

Kate moved beside her to do the same, first hanging her S9s (blue shirt, blue pants), S6s (black pants, white shirt for night; and white pants, white shirt for day), S2s (ceremonials) and PT rig (navy blue shorts, navy blue and yellow tee, and blue and white rugby shirt).

"Do you always hang your PT rig?" Nikki questioned, raising her eyebrows as Kate closed the wardrobe door.

"It's a habit I'm not going to bother breaking." She bent down to pick up her shoes (GPs and parade shoes), and brought them beside her bed where she then proceed to sit on the ground.

"Please tell me you are _not_ going to shine them." The brunette could only groan as Kate took out her polishing kit, laying the polish, toothbrush and Chux on floor beside her. "You are such a freak sometimes," she murmured.

Kate only smiled, applying the polish to one parade shoe with the toothbrush before rhythmically buffing with the cloth. "Aren't you going to do something Nik?" she asked. "Or are you going to go say hello to Josh?"

"The latter," Nikki answered. "You have fun polishing– Oh, hi Mike!" she added, having opened the door to reveal the other half of the school's captaincy team. "Joining Kate in polishing your shoes? How kind. Well, I'm just leaving, you two have fun."

Mike frowned as the bubbly, yet sarcastic girl slipped passed him. Looking across to see Kate rubbing furiously, he let a sigh escape his lips.

"Did you want some help?" he asked, stepping across the threshold and closer to Kate.

"No, _thanks_." She paused, not looking up. "What are you doing in here? You know more than anyone that we could both get kicked out if you're caught in here."

"I know, I just–" He ran a hand through his hair, sitting on her vacant bed. "I just wanted to say sorry about the flight. And for being an arse."

She growled softly, finishing one shoe and starting on the other. "Fine. Apology accepted. Happy now?" She looked up, raising an eyebrow.

"No."

"What is it then? What will make you leave me alone?" She looked back down, seeing her reflection in the shiny, yet dirty shoe in her hand.

"You looking me in the eye when I say sorry," he answered softly. Not quite the truth, far from it actually, but it was something. "I want to see your expression properly when I say sorry."

Finishing the second shoe, she placed them beneath her bed in neat pairs. Packing away her kit, she put it in a drawer beside the bed before standing up. Walking into the adjoining bathroom, Mike could hear the water run as Kate washed her hands of any excess polish. Standing, he sauntered over and leaned against the doorframe.

"Are you going to keep ignoring me Kate?"

"Did you never learn the meaning of the word 'patience'?"

"What are you doing Kate?"

"Washing my hands."

"Aren't you going to acquiesce to my request?"

"Maybe." She wrung her hands of any water and dried them with her towel. Pushing passed his slightly hunched form, she went to the wardrobe and pulled out her S9s. Hanging them carefully on the handle, she proceeded to rummage for her lid. Finding it at the bottom of her luggage, she placed it on her bedside table before straightening up and heading towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Mike called, jumping slightly as he moved to follow the blonde woman out.

"Outside," she replied. "Feel free to stalk me if you want."

"I'm not stalking you Kate." He ran to catch up, very soon falling into step as she moved through the corridors and into the open air.

"Well, it sure as hell feels like it."

"Kate, all I'm asking is for you to stop, look me in the eye, and allow me to apologise."

She came to a halt, closing her eyes before opening them and turning herself to face the man beside her. Looking up to meet his gaze, she waited.

"Kate," he started, waiting to see if she would look away. When she didn't, he continued, "Kate, I want to apologise. I want to apologise for being an arse on the plane his morning, for being a jerk at school throughout the year, but most of all, I want to apologise for lying to you about my... girlfriend."

Kate winced, but her gaze didn't stray.

"I never wanted to hurt you Kate. I care about you too much to hurt you." His voice faltered slightly, and he drew a weary breath. "Do you... Do you forgive me, Kate?"

She blinked, watching an invisible list of replies cross her vision. Holding his gaze, she answered, "You know that I can't say that I forgive you, Mike. You hurt me when you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend."

"Kate..."

"Mike, _please_. I _want_ to say that I forgive you... But I _can't_. You're holding me back from doing that. Perhaps one day I will be able to forgive you, but that day isn't today."

His face paled and it was as if his heart had been shred all over again. Damn, his ego was getting smashed to bits by this woman!

"I'm sorry Mike."

"No."

She looked at him questioningly.

"_I'm_ sorry Kate."

---

"Competition Day, day one," Nikki announced with a yawn, covering her ears as _wakey, wakey_ played out.

"Fantastic," Kate yawned sarcastically, rolling out of bed and changing into her PT rig. "What's first again? Swimming?"

"Ah huh. And then tomorrow it's running. And the day after that, a 'surprise' event as the Commodore dubbed it," Nikki added, she too changing into her PT rig.

Stumbling through their door and into the corridor, they followed the line of people out onto the parade grounds. Stifling a yawn, Kate felt an elbow softly nudge her side. Looking up, she was greeted with Mike's boyish smile. She groaned.

"What's got you in such a happy mood?"

"I think his ego has been replenished," Nikki sniggered, laughing as Mike caught her gaze.

"Well, that same ego will be going down when I kick your arse in the swimming race today," Kate teased.

"I'm sure it'll be a good competition."

Nikki scoffed, breaking their little game. "Some competition; it's one little four hundred metre race with four different strokes, as well as treading water for fifteen minutes and survival stroking the fastest. _Easy peesy, lemon squeezy._ Kate will win in a heartbeat."

"Gosh Nik, I don't think it's Mike's ego we should be talking about." Kate laughed as Nikki huffed, jogging off to join Josh, Pete and Chris at the front of the group.

"You'd think _she_ was the one racing against me," Mike commented.

"I know..."

"I'm sure it'll be a good competition."

"Right."

"But I'm going to win."

"Pfft. There's your ego shining through again."

"So?"

"So what?"

"Good luck for later."

"Well, that was a random change of topic. Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Some blonde girl I met down at the beach about five years ago."

Kate raised an eyebrow. "I never taught you to do that."

"Sure you did."

"You know what? Drop the subject."

"Good luck for later then."

"Fine. _Good luck_ for later then."

They shook hands on it.

---

"Welcome to the tenth annual swimming carnival here at HMAS Cerberus. Watch as the officers of tomorrow go head to head and battle it out to win the title as 'Fittest of the Fit'. First up, we have the most anticipated race of the day. Two students from William Creswell Naval Academy, Midshipman's Flynn and McGregor, will be battling it out in the four by one hundred individual medley. Watch as the referee blows the horn!"

_Minutes later..._

"And it seems... Midshipman Kate McGregor is the winner! Look at her as she smiles triumphantly! Ah, that must hurt for Midshipman Flynn. But wait! He's following her out! And! He's congratulating her! There folks, is a fine example of good sportsmanship. And that concludes the first race."

---

"Congratulations Kate. You beat me."

Kate smiled, shrugging her shoulder. "It's no big deal. I guess the best person won."

"Proud much?"

"Cocky much? Remember this morning?"

"I blame it on Nikki."

"You blame _everything_ on me though," Nikki interrupted, nudging Kate slightly.

"Touché."

"Get ready to be beat Flynn. You're going down again tomorrow."

Kate shook her head, amused with the situation. "Honestly Nik, why don't _you_ run in the race tomorrow?"

"Because you're better than me, and I would rather cheer you on than flunk out halfway through."

"Still..."

"Anyway, I'm going to steal Kate away for a while. You should probably go off and start working a miracle for tomorrow. Goodbye."

---

"Welcome to the tenth annual cross country carnival here at HMAS Cerberus. We're just nearing the end of the final race, and the two representatives of William Creswell Naval Academy, Midshipman's Flynn and McGregor are at the head of the pack. They're nearing the final bend... It looks like McGregor's in the lead... and... Flynn _just_ inches over the line first. The disappointment on McGregor's face... The look of pride and triumph on Flynn's...

"Oh, look! There it is again! Another fantastic display of sportsmanship folks! She's going in for the handshake! But wait–! What's this? Flynn's pulling McGregor into a hug! What a touching moment of fraternisation here at the grounds on HMAS Cerberus. Tune in again folks for the final 'secret' event tomorrow."

---

"Did you really have to hug me, Mike?"

"Yep."

"Are you going to start gloating?"

"Nope."

"Okay... Anyway... Congratulations Mike."

"Thank you Kate."

"Argh! _Mike Flynn_!" Nikki fell into step beside the pair, fuming slightly at Mike's win.

"Jealous much?" Kate stated, grinning as Nikki went pink.

"I wanted you to win... Is that so much to ask for?"

"There was an inch between us Nik."

"But– Argh. Fine. Congratulations Mike."

"Thanks Nik," he answered.

"Will you please lose tomorrow?"

"No Nikki."

"I'll pay you in chocolate."

"You aren't going to tempt me into losing Nik."

She sighed. "I tried. But whatever. Good luck to both of you for tomorrow."

"Thank you Nikki."

---

"It's the final 'Fittest of the Fit' competition day here at HMAS Cerberus. The sun is shining, there's not a cloud in the sky and the ocean gleams with forever on its horizon. And thus the setting is set for the final challenge. What _is_ the final challenge you ask? It has just been announced as a simple drill exercise – simple, but hard. How long will they be able to last? Only time will tell. It is a fine twenty-eight degrees here at Cerberus. Thirty minutes has already past, and believe you me, it is a torturous challenge they are facing."

---

"I think I'm sunburnt..."

"You should've worn sunscreen."

"I did."

"Bad luck then."

"What about you?"

"Oh, a few spots here and there."

"That was cruelty."

"It was."

"How're your legs?"

"Dead. What about your arm?"

"Same."

"Do you think they thought that challenge out?"

"Ha. I have a feeling they would've gone through with it no matter what the weather."

"Yeah..."

"Hi guys!" Nikki bound up to them, bottles of water in each hand. "Congratulations for holdg out that long. I would've fainted half an hour in."

"Saluting by numbers isn't exactly the most productive way of finding a winner, but definitely shows how fit a person is," Kate answered, massaging her legs.

Nikki placed the bottles of water beside them. "Well, I'm very proud of you both. Especially _you_ Kate."

"Why is that Nikki?" she asked.

"Because you beat Mike," she grinned

"Yeah, by a millisecond. He dropped his arm _before_ catching me when I decided it was time to faint."

Nikki shrugged. "You still won. Anyway, I'm going to go find Josh. See you two later."

"Well isn't she happy," Mike commented.

"She did get her wish, so you could hardly blame her for being happy."

"I know."

Silence fell between them.

"Um..."

"Kate?"

"Yeah, Mike?"

"Congratulations. You did really well. You deserve the win."

"Thank you, Mike."

He got up to leave, but she called him back.

"Oh, and Mike?"

He looked at her expectantly, waiting for her words.

"I forgive you."


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note:** _The third last chapter :D Whoot, enjoy this part, and as a side note, the next chapter will be posted tomorrow, because I did promise myself that I would finish and post this fanfic by the end of the year :)_

* * *

**William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 14

"My legs and arm are still hurting from that final challenge," Kate groaned, cringing as she crossed her legs and lifted her right arm to lie across her stomach.

It had been almost five days since the final challenge incident, and now the group from WCNA had moved up north to Melbourne, where they were now housing themselves at TS Voyager's Williamstown unit. It was an all too familiar sight for Kate, who had gasped when she saw how little the unit had changed.

"I can hardly blame you Kate. Three hours at attention, saluting by numbers? Not the best idea in the world."

"It wasn't _my_ fault."

"I know. But still, you did it."

"I know," she huffed.

There was a knock on the door, prompting Kate to call out, "Come in!"

The sound of squeaking door hinges momentarily broke the chatter in the female mess, and a male voice boomed across the silence.

"Male on deck!"

Kate closed her eyes in slight anger. Standing up with a groan, she gave Nikki a brief smile before walking to the open door. Crossing her arms, she leaned back against the wall.

"What do you want Mike?"

"I just wanted to talk."

"We're talking."

"You are such a smartarse," he smirked.

"_Har, har_."

"Bench?" He gestured towards the wooden bench, situated beneath the portal window and on the corner of drill hall. It was a bench Kate had sat on often when she was in cadets...

"Sure."

"Still sore?" Mike asked once they had sat down.

"As if the final challenge was yesterday," she stated, sighing in relief as her muscles relaxed. "Although, they are a _tad_ better than what they were yesterday."

Mike chucked. "I suppose it is better than the final challenge being yesterday."

"Is this all you wanted to _talk_ about?"

"Not really..."

"Please don't bring up five years ago again..."

"I have fond memories of five years ago; you can hardly blame me for wanting to bring them up," he replied, smiling gently.

"You can't always dwell on the past," Kate said bluntly, "because it's not going to help you in the present or the future."

---

Melbourne Central, Bourke Street mall, Meyer... Man, Nikki _loved_ Melbourne! The shopping was fantastic, the food to die for, but the best part of all? Definitely the little story it was setting to...

"I love Melbourne!" Nikki cried, stretching out in her chair without so much as a backwards glance. Hence, that's how Kate received a slightly punch to the stomach.

"Oof, Nik!"

"Oh crap." She sat up instantly, looking at her friend sheepishly. "Sorry Kate!"

"Sure you are," she breathed, sitting in the chair opposite. "Ow."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm breathing aren't I?"

Nikki laughed, reaching out to grab her water. Taking a rather large sip, she waved as Josh, Pete, Chris and Mike made their way towards them. Kate smiled briefly as they all pulled up a chair.

"Ladies," greeted Pete. "What have you two been up to?"

"Shopping," Nikki answered.

Kate snorted. "And eating."

"What?" Nikki raised an eyebrow. "I like food."

"Clearly."

"Pfft. Anyway, what do you four get up to? Girl scouting?"

"Not really," Josh replied, "'Cept Chris here; found a girl named Sally. Got her phone number didn't you?" He looked over at the grinning male.

"She's moving up to Cairns next year," he stated.

"So?"

"We're planning on meeting up when she moves."

"Ah huh."

"You're going to marry her then?" Pete asked, smirking.

Chris grinned boyishly. "You never know. She's definitely a character... And everything I want in girl... Beautiful, smart, funny..."

"She's definitely a keeper."

There was a round of laughter from the other boys, but Chris could only smile. Kate and Nikki both rolled their eyes, shaking their heads before standing up. Reaching down to pick up their shopping bags, Nikki announced that they were going to continue blowing their spending budget.

Kate waved them all a goodbye, before walking after Nikki as she exited the food court. Thinking back to the brief, yet amusing conversation she had just listened to, she realised that Mike – the overly talkative, fitness nut, hadn't spoken a single word the entire sitting.

"Mike was quiet today," Nikki said suddenly, as if reading her thoughts.

"Really? I didn't notice." Playing dumb was definitely her forte.

"Pfft, as if Kate. I saw the way you were looking at him when he didn't say anything," she continued, looking into a shop window and gasping at its contents.

"What?" Kate looked up to see what had Nikki gasping. In the window was a gorgeous, pink chiffon dress with delicate, yet simplistic gold detail around the front. She couldn't help but cringe just a little. Pink definitely wasn't her favourite colour...

"I want that dress." She leaned closer towards the window, eyes wide in awe.

"You have no reason to buy it though," Kate pointed out.

"The formal's coming up soon. I could buy it for that." She was heading toward the store's entrance, still in a trance.

"Nikki, it's probably more than three hundred dollars!" Kate cried, moving forward to follow the brunette into the store.

"Hi there, how can I help you today?" greeted one of the sales clerks. She was wearing a neat floral number that flattered her slim figure and drew attention to her petite waist. _A store creation no doubt_, Kate thought.

Nikki spoke up before Kate could knock any more sense into her, "The pink dress in the window – how much is it?"

"Four hundred dollars." The sales clerk looked at Nikki, as if judging how skinny she was. "Did you want to try it on?"

Nikki grinned, shoving her bags into Kate's hands. "Yes please."

Kate sighed, sitting down on the couch provided in front of the change room Nikki disappeared into. Fiddling with her skirt, she hummed a familiar tune.

"Were you looking for a dress too?" The sales clerk was standing beside Kate, looking at her expectantly. She had the feeling that the woman was eager to serve; too bad that she didn't really need a dress...

"Um..." She looked around at the dresses, finally spotting cream against the pink, purple and green. Going over to it, she fingered the soft material. "What sizes does this dress come in?"

The sales clerk smiled, joining her at the rack. "Don't worry, it'll fit you. Would you like to try it on?"

"Uh." She looked back at the change room that Nikki still occupied. It'd be hypocritical if she decided to buy the dress for no particular occasion other than having a pretty dress in her wardrobe. Turning back to the sales clerk, she smiled. "Sure, why not?"

---

The following day, the temperature soared to thirty-five degrees, surprising all the current occupants at TS Voyager. Deciding that it was too damn hot to do anything better, Admiral Flynn proposed that the group venture down to Williamstown Beach.

Thus, that is how Kate found herself lying atop her towel, beneath a beach umbrella at three thirty in the afternoon. Squinting against the glare on the sand, she could see Nikki seemingly _not_ canoodling with Josh. Smiling, she returned her gaze back to her book.

"Pride and Prejudice eh?"

"You know it's my favourite," she answered, not looking up.

"Yeah, I know." Mike sat at the bottom of her towel, within inches of her crossed feet. If he just–

"Don't even think about it."

He grinned, shaking his head. "Whatever you say Kate."

"Aren't you going to swim?"

"Not at this point in time, no. Aren't you?"

"I thought I'd keep you company."

"I'm preoccupied; and quite frankly, this book will always be much more interesting than anything you can do."

He raised an eyebrow. Shifting slightly, his hands moved to catch her right foot. She jerked at his touch. Raising her eyes to meet his gaze, she sent him a threatening look. Smirking, he slid a finger over the base of her captured foot softly, earning another jerk.

"Miiikkkkeee! Stop! It!" She giggled, her book being left aside as she kicked against Mike's hold. "Plleeaassseee!"

"Do you still think your book is more interesting?" He continued tickling her foot, grinning as she protested.

"Yeess! Yes, okay! _You're_ more interesting!"

He stopped almost immediately, but still held Kate's foot in his grasp. Smiling, he brushed a hand over her leg, leaving a tingling sensation running through Kate's body. Feeling her breath hitch, she fumbled over her next words.

"Mike... what– you doi–?"

"Shh." He moved closer, pressing a finger to her lips. Her eyes fluttered closed at the touch. Mike took the gesture as a cue to lean in closer. Brushing his lips against her cheek, he moved to hover above her lips.

Kate opened her eyes, Mike's blue gaze greeting her. Breathing in his scent, she felt her breaths shorten further. Mike smirked, finally closing the gap and pressing his lips to hers as Kate's eyes slipped shut.


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: **_Well, here it is - the next chapter. I did say I would update each day until this fic was finished, and believe it or not, there's only one more after this, WHOOT. Enjoy this part, and don't forget to review and tell me what you think at the end :D_

**

* * *

William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 15

The sun beat down on the grass covered grounds, reflected off the sparkling blue lake, and was cursed by nearly the whole Academy. It was still only late November and already the sun was playing chicken with the weather, flirting with the heat, but never reaching anything higher than thirty-five degrees. However, with exams having passed, and the only calendar events being the school formal and year twelve graduation, the officers felt – and the Admiral in particular – it was time to let the school's leading members run free. Somewhat.

Lying under one of the many gumtrees surrounding the lake, Kate smiled contently as she watched the other year twelves muck around in the lake. She had a right mind to join them, and was just about to when something caught her eye. Squinting against the sunlight, she could make out the silhouettes of two people. Frowning, she stood up despite the heat, curious about what two people could be doing by the school gate.

Taking the shaded path around the lake, she stood behind a tree, a good one hundred metres away from them. Truth be told, she didn't exactly tolerate spying on other people, but she had to make an exception. From the body language shown, she couldn't be sure if these two people were dealing drugs or just talk intimately.

Watching closely, she could now make out that one was male and the other was female. _Lovers_, she thought. Frowning slightly as the woman started to raise her voice, she took a cautionary step towards them. She could hear a few phrases here and there, but she wasn't going to look into any of it until one such phrase was said.

"... taking me to your school formal..."

Realising the guy must've been asking the girl to the formal, she began to retreat. That is, until she heard the reply – and _that_ voice.

"... I'll call you later..."

Feeling her mouth drop open slightly at his words, she halted in her tracks. She watched as he leant in to give her a kiss on the cheek, slightly revolted at watching the sight, and yet feeling too entranced and betrayed to move away.

The girl returned the kiss with one on the lips before moving back and slipping away through the school gates. Watching as he ran a hand through his hair, she felt a short, painful stab of jealousy. Clenching a fist in frustration and cursing beneath her breath at her own stupidity, she turned to leave, halting in her tracks when his voice called her name.

"Kate!"

Turning on her heel, she raised an eyebrow in question. "Yeah?"

"Whatever you saw or whatever you heard, it's not what you think," he said quietly, walking toward her.

"I'm sure," she replied sarcastically. "You've got a date for the formal then?"

"Kate, you don't understand."

"Of course I do," she answered matter-of-factly, tugging distractedly at her loose fitting shirt and causing Mike to look down at it too. "She's your girlfriend," she continued, looking back up, bringing Mike's gaze with her, "and she deserves to go with you to the formal."

"What?" He frowned in confusion, having no clue whatsoever what she was talking about. Didn't she just overhear the conversation he had with Ursula?

"I'm glad you've got a date Mike," she added, giving him a saddened half smile. "At least one of us does."

He observed her slipping facade, wanting to reach out and touch her face, wanting to comfort her and tell her that she wouldn't be going alone. But something held him back: that look in her eyes. That look of total and complete betrayal, the begging and hurt behind them.

"Ka–"

"I've got to get back; Nikki will be wondering where I am." She offered him another hurt smile before turning to walk away, this time not being stopped by voice or touch.

Mike growled furiously, watching as he let the girl of his dreams walk away. Pulling at his hair, he let out a low sigh. What had just happened? Had they really just gone from _almost_ lovers to nothing but mere acquaintances? Did she really think that he had asked _Ursula_ to the formal? He sighed again, slumping against the gumtree.

He'd have to work something out. He saw the disappointment and betrayal in her eyes. She _wanted_ him to ask her to the formal. He just... never got the chance. He needed to speak to her again; whether or not she would let him bring up the topic again was another worry.

Surely she would let him right? He _did_ kiss her after all... But then again, that was almost a month ago. Since then they had not spoken a word of it, only going so far as to blush each time they caught the other staring at their lips. Hanging his head, he tried to think of some way to again say sorry and of course, make it up to her. However, before he could do that, there was someone he needed to call.

---

"Hey Kate," Nikki smiled. "What happened? You look awful."

"I feel awful..." Kate replied, slumping against the tree trunk. It seemed that Nikki had been waiting for her, once she had realised that Kate had gone off elsewhere. And like all good friends, instantly knew something was up when her friend had come back from her little adventure.

"Want to talk about it?" She didn't really expect Kate to answer but there were some days when she would spill like an overflowing sink. And apparently this was one of those days.

"Mike invited Ursula to the formal." Kate glanced up to take in Nikki's reaction. It was slow, but it did come.

"WHAT?" Nikki joined Kate by the tree, using her towel as a rug. "How did you find out?"

"I overheard him asking her by the school gate... He also said that he was going to call her afterwards. I honestly thought that he was going to ask me..."

"Uh, so did half the school," Nikki commented matter-of-factly. "It was just a little obvious that you two were sort of together. What, after the kiss at the beach and all." She looked at Kate sheepishly, knowing that neither Kate nor Mike knew that _almost_ everyone knew about it. _Now she knows..._ Nikki thought, chuckling softly.

"Did you have to bring that up?" Kate asked, blushing at the memory. "It didn't mean anything."

"Sure it didn't." Like hell it didn't mean anything. "And the fact that you were passionately kissing him back when I interrupted doesn't indicate that it was anything?"

"Oh shut up," she retorted, her smirk contradicting her words. "A decent person wouldn't have watched. A decent person would've interrupted, _not_ wait until the kissing pair noticed they had company."

Nikki giggled, her mind briefly flashing back to the day they'd spent at Williamstown Beach whilst in Melbourne. "Well, in my defence, I'm going to say that you _know_ that I can be an incredibly indecent person around you."

"Good try Nik."

"Yeah, I suppose."

They laughed, before Nikki continued on with the topic they were supposed to be discussing. "I don't think Mike is actually going to bring Ursula to the formal. They haven't been seen together all that much – and the Admiral actually disapproves of her. According to rumours, he would rather see Mike with someone who had more backbone. Ursula's a bit of a wimp from what I've seen..."

"Really?"

Nikki nodded. "Mike's the sort of guy that likes to please his dad."

Kate laughed bitterly, saying, "Believe me when I say I know."

"He's really hurt you this time, hasn't he?" she asked, glancing sideways at the saddened blonde.

"Maybe just shattered one of my childhood dreams, but nothing more," Kate replied.

"Look, even if you don't end up getting a date – which you will, because there are like a hundred guys who would love to be your date – you can still go and have a good time. It's the last calendar event before we all graduate and go our separate ways – at least, some of us – so you should enjoy yourself. I'll keep you company," she added, putting an arm around Kate's shoulders and drawing her into a half hug despite the heat.

"But you've got Josh," Kate reasoned as Nikki moved her arm away.

"He'll get over it."

Kate snickered, Nikki soon joining in.

"I'm glad I've got a friend like you Nik. Thank you."


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note: **_So here it is the, last part! Basically this part is tying up any loose ends (I think). Also, it has been mentioned in the previous chapter, and again in this chapter, that there __is__ a graduation; but considering I would rather not write another chapter, and it's pretty straight forward what would happen, I'm just going to leave it here. You can just use your imaginations to find out what happens after ;) BE WARNED __**it gets incredibly clichéd near the end, **__and as much as I hate clichés I always find myself writing them. But then again, that's how I planned this..._

_Hope that you all enjoy this final part, and please don't forget to review at the end!_

* * *

**William Creswell Naval Academy **– Chapter 16

In the end, it was really just a choice of spending the night of the formal with Nikki and Josh (and her being the 'crowd'), _or_, going alone to 'enjoy' herself while she watched everyone else – and more specifically, Mike and Ursula – as they danced the night away. Kate was never fond of being the third wheel, nor was she ever going to want to watch the guy she liked with his arms around another woman. So, taking both thoughts into account, she resolved to tell Nikki, much to her friend's disappointment, that she wasn't going to go to the formal.

"But, _why_?" Nikki cried, stopping halfway through putting on her formal dress – that pink chiffon dress she'd bought whilst down in Melbourne; the one that Kate kept pestering her about all the way back to the Academy.

"Because I don't want to feel like an imposter when I sit with you and Josh," Kate said pointedly, causing Nikki to scoff. "_Plus_, I don't really want to see Mike again. So far I've been doing well in avoiding him."

"Kate, you can't keep avoiding him forever. You realise you're going to have to see him at the graduation right?" she asked, struggling to zip the dress and asking Kate to help her.

Kate deftly zipped the dress up, smiling as Nikki sighed at her reflection in the mirror. "Do you think Josh will like it?"

"Nik, the guy practically stares at you when you're in your uniform, I don't really need to imagine what he would do if he saw you in this," Kate replied laughing. "He'll love it for sure."

Nikki blushed, giving a small twirl before putting on her shoes. Biting her lower lip, she hugged Kate tightly. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For being yourself. And for putting up with me.'

Kate snorted, shaking her head. "Nik, just..." She laughed, at a loss for words. "Just have fun tonight."

"It really is a shame you aren't coming Kate." She offered her a small smile before walking to the door. "I'll see you afterwards," she said, putting her hand on the doorknob. "Be awake so I can bombard you with all the gossip."

"Sure thing. Night Nik." And with a final smile, the brunette disappeared into the night, the prospect of a first kiss and a small declaration of love looming over the horizon.

Sighing, Kate sat on her bed, eyeing the wardrobe and the little bit of cream falling out of it. Walking over to it, she fingered the material, its softness making her smile. _Maybe it wouldn't be too bad..._

Opening the wardrobe door, she examined the dress. How Nikki hadn't spotted it, was beyond her. She'd seemed to observe everything else about her after all. Pulling the dress off the hanger gently, she held it to her silhouette, observing the way it swished around her in the mirror. It really was beautiful... but in all honestly, _why_ did she buy it? In the hopes that Mike would see her in it?

"Just another broken daydream," she muttered to herself. "But still, why not?"

---

From his position by the lake, he could see the progression of people as they came and went to the setting that was the Academy formal. The young men wore their formal whites, all of whom had had them dry-cleaned a week before for the occasion; and the young ladies, added colour to otherwise white event. There were dresses of all sorts of cuts, lengths and colours. There was red, pink, blue and even, the occasional black.

Mike sighed unwillingly. Seeing the happiness on all of their faces, he buried his head in his hands, before turning away and walking in the direction of the girls' sleeping quarters. He needed to talk to Kate, tell that she was wrong about what she'd seen only a few days ago between him and Ursula. But upon arriving at the accommodation she shared with the brunette lieutenant, he found not a soul.

"Kate?" he asked, confused when there was no response to his knock. Perhaps she had gone to the formal anyway... – but, what if she was with someone else?

A wave of panic shot through him. Walking quickly, he exited the building and followed the path down back past one side of the lake, with the intention of confronting the guy who had had the guts to ask _his_ Kate to the formal. However, an unlikely sight caught his eye.

Coming to a halt, he frowned. Who was this person? Surely it wasn't– But what if it was? Clenching his fist – being careful of squashing the object in his hand – he walked towards her. The person didn't stir at the sound of his footsteps on the grassy oval, instead continuing to look over at the crowd of people on the other side.

"Kate?" Mike called out cautiously. "Is that you?"

The woman turned her head briefly in the direction of his voice. Seeing who it was, she wrapped her arms around herself, as if to create a shield and protect herself from what the man could do.

"I thought you would be with Ursula," she stated, turning away.

"Kate," he began, taking a step toward her, "I dumped her."

She was facing him in a heartbeat, her eyes wide with disbelief and her mouth open with wonder. "What do you mean you dumped her? I thought you'd be with her at the formal!" she cried, still surprised at the news.

"I never intended on bringing her to the formal," Mike answered, still stepping closer. "When you overheard us speaking the other day, I was trying to break up with her – but she's so bloody persistent and invited herself to the formal. I got fed up with her and told her that I'd call her later. When I did, I dumped her. A harsh way of saying 'Goodbye, I don't want to be your boyfriend anymore' but I needed to do it. I was desperate. I needed to dump her, so that I–" He choked on his words, causing Kate to look back at him, only to find that he was standing beside her.

"So that you could what, Mike?" she asked, her eyes analysing him.

He placed a hand against her cheek, his thumb caressing her soft skin. "So that I could ask _you_ to the formal."

Kate grinned slowly. "Is that an offer?"

"Maybe... But first... do you forgive me Kate?"

"What's there to forgive? You didn't do anything wrong. It was my own assumption that's gotten us into this silly lover's tiff."

"Lover's tiff?"

"You know what I mean." She blushed, casting her gaze down.

He grinned, dropping his hand away from her cheek and taking a step back. "Look, can we please start over? No ceremony, no titles, just a man and a woman, meeting for the first time. Kind of."

Kate smiled, nodding. Blushing further, she waited for Mike to initiate the handshake.

Transferring the flower he still held in his right hand to his left, he held out his preferred hand for her to shake. "Good evening. I'm Mike Flynn, and in my opinion, you are the most beautiful and intelligent girl I have ever seen."

Eyes fluttering unwillingly, Kate held her own hand to his. "I'm Kate McGregor, and in my opinion, you are the most charming, handsome, idiotic and competitive man, I have ever met."

He smirked, tightening his grip on her hand and pulling her a little bit closer. "I was also just wondering... would you go to my school formal with me?"

"Mike, I would've said yes had you asked me ten months ago," she grinned, closing the gap and wrapping her arms around his neck.

Holding her tightly, he brought his lips to her cheek, and then to her mouth. Pulling away, he tugged at her hand, leading her in the direction of the formal. She remained pressed up against his side the entire walk to the staged area, her head leaning against his shoulder and her arm wrapped around his waist.

"Dance with me?" Mike asked, once they'd reached the dance floor.

"Of course."

Twirling her once, they took on a classic waltzing pose. Smiling as they waltzed about the dance floor, they came to a slower beat as they saw Nikki and Josh dancing across the floor. Kate smiled at Nikki, who had caught her eye and winked, before returning her attention to the young man she was dancing with.

"You know..." Mike started, whispering against her ear, "I don't think I could ever let you go now..."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"But you know we both want to join the navy; there's hardly a chance of us..."

"Kate, whatever the future brings, wherever our paths may lead, I'm always going to be beside you the entire way."

And despite the uncertainty and unknowing of what would come, she smiled.

FINIS~


End file.
